L'Avenir - Cruising Europe's Inland Waterways

Tarascon After a further promise from the courier to pick up the air conditioner wasn't kept we bundled the offending item unceremoniously into the spare cabin- repository of all junk when we don't have visitors- said our goodbyes to the friends we had made over the past fortnight and cast off for our final day on the Rhone. The wind which had been blowing strongly for a week had moderated but what was left of it was behind us so we made good progress. After passing through the Beaucaire lock the current picks up considerably and soon we were bowling along at 13kph (that's honestly quite fast for us) past the impressive castle at Tarascon and then onto the Petite Rhone just before Arles. Immediately the character of the river changes becoming shallower, more closed in and completely lacking in traffic. We didn't meet a single boat. The Petite Rhone runs right through to the Mediterranean but becomes very shallow in its lower reaches and navigable for only small b...

Avignon The Rhone has treated us fairly gently on the whole. The current was slight, a disappointment to one of us and a relief to the other whilst the weather remained almost continuously hot. The 'almost' being a sudden, major thunderstorm which caught us out in the middle of  a section of the river so wide it was like a lake. Seeing a huge electricity pylon light up like a Christmas tree when struck by lightning was spectacular but a minute later we were somewhat unnerved (to put it mildly) when it seemed like we might be next as there was a flash and an almighty crash right over us causing our instrument panel to crackle alarmingly. As I write there is another thunderstorm going on but this time we are safely tied up and there are other, taller boats around us. I have to say, however, that I'm not enjoying the spectacle quite as much as I used to. There are power generation facilities all along the Rhone. Hydro, wind,solar and nuclear. Here's how to give y...

We were undecided until the last minute as to which way we should turn on leaving Confluence port in Lyon. Left and down the Rhone to the unknown south or the safe option, right, and back up the benign Saone. 'Let's just go for it,' declared the skipper. So, although we have no winter mooring organised (not for want of trying) we turned left, past the adventurous architecture of the confluence riverfront and joined the Rhone; France's 'mightiest river' according to the information book handed to us in the first lock which didn't make me feel any happier. Confluence of the Saone and Rhone The Rhone locks are huge and are controlled remotely. The procedure is that you call up on VHF (or phone) to announce yourself and then follow instructions. It's the second part of that which inevitably causes confusion -for me anyway - you have to respond to what the lock keeper says to you. What they ask you at the first lock is, what's the name o...

Arriving in Lyon Decision made. We leave Lyon tomorrow morning. Stay tuned for the direction. In the meantime a few photos from this great city. Place de Bellecour, Lyon La Vaporetto View over Old Lyon from the Basillica Notre Dame de Fourviere Confluence Port. Our home in Lyon The Weight of Oneself by Michael Elmgreen & Ingar Dragset Fountain Bartholdi - Place des Terreaux, Lyon From the restaurant at Basilica Notre Dame de Fourviere Jousting contest in the port, Lyon Our internet connection isn't the best so will edit this post when I can.

Tournus We are now at the confluence of the Saone and Rhone in the lovely city of Lyon. This is as far south as we have yet been and we now have to decide whether to commit to the 300km Rhone cruise to the south or return to central France. We have been here for a few days waiting for a part to be delivered for our air condtioner which naturally gave up the ghost during the heatwave. Being here has been no hardship; Lyon is a great city with loads to see, do and eat but mooring provision at the new port development is much too limited and the stressed harbourmaster is agitating for people to move on. Pressure on spaces isn't helped by one of the two pontoons being taken up by small day boats for hire. We will be leaving tomorrow. Will it be a left or right turn out of the harbour? The trip down the Saone has, so far, been very enjoyable. Compared to the hard work of the canal du Centre the river has been a leisurely cruise. There is very little current at this time of year...

France is criss-crossed with a network of marked walking routes the shortest of which are the yellow PR (petites randonées). Many villages will have an information board showing a map of the walks in their area with some details about the length, level of difficulty and time required. So, you look at the map, decide where you want to go according to how energetic you feel, and set off. Every so often there will be a marker pointing you in the right direction. Fool proof you'd think. Whilst visiting the tourist office in Santenay the helpful young man there showed us a photo of a fully restored local windmill telling us was that this was the last working windmill in Burgundy. "It's not far," he assured us, whilst waving in a vaguely easterly direction. Or maybe it was more north....Anyway, after consulting the map in the village square and discovering the windmill route was classed as suitable for families and required 2 hours, two of us decided that we'd ...

Paray le Monial The Canal du Centre passes through some lovely countryside but there's a price to be paid for hills. Locks. Lots of them. The locks on this canal ones are automated but they need to be set by an itinerant lock keeper who will arrange with you each day what time you will set off and will appear from time to time during the day to ask 'continuez?' in the firm hope that you will say, 'non,' so he can go home. Locks and heatwaves are a bad combination. The mechanisms (according to the keepers) don't like them and shut down randomly meaning a call to the control centre on the emergency intercom. The person responsible for answering the intercom doesn't like them either or is perhaps overwhelmed by calls, because they don't answer. The crew member handling the bow rope doesn't like them because s/he (me) has to stand out in the blazing sunshine for the 15 minutes ( assuming all goes well) that it takes to work through. And the eclusi...