Sunny and hot again, with a few light white clouds, clouding over later and rain starting at 3.00 a.m. Left just after nine and we lead the way on the 2 km run up to Nègra. The lock was empty with the bottom end gates open. There was no chance that I could throw the rope up as the lock was 4m deep and I couldn’t even see the bollard, so Mike went up a ladder dropped my rope round the bollard and did likewise for Bill (his centre rope was too short so Mike tied it on the bollard). A young man worked the lock (using a yellow zapper) under the instruction of an older VNF man. It was 9.45 a.m. when we left the top of the lock with Rosy in the lead. At Laval 2-rise the lock keeper was a blonde lady with a six year old son in a Spiderman suit. Her white cat went to look at Fanny, she barked a lot but Bill wouldn’t let her get off to investigate. The cat came to see us and chased my rope as I fetched it off the bollard. A short distance to Gardouch, up the shallow 2m lock and tied on the quay next to Rosy while Bill went on his bike to the boulangerie and brought us a loaf back too. While he was away we repotted the new plant I bought from Jardiland, a moss rose with red, pink and orange flowers. The winter pansies were dried out so I chopped off the seed pods and put them in a bag to sort out the seeds later. We waited while Bill prepared his lunch so he could eat it en route to Renneville. Set off again at 11.20 a.m. with a Locaboat from Nègra just coming into the empty chamber of Gardouche behind us. Yacht She was moored by the restaurant boat Surcouf below the lock, the skipper was from the Humber and we had a quick chat as we went past. Our mast head light only just fitted under the arch of the brick bridge below the lock. Another very young student keeper worked the lock for us. The house alongside the lock was deserted. It was 12.20 p.m. when we followed Rosy up the 2.8 km pound to Encassan two rise. We moored below the lock next to the wooden landing, Bill put Rosy under the trees, and had some lunch. When we looked out at 1.30 p.m. the Locaboat was behind us plus a small French yacht. The resident male keeper was 10 minutes late coming out to work the lock. We went up first and he worked the lock again for the other two boats once we’d cleared the top. Followed Rosy along the 1.6 km pound to Emborrel, 3.10m deep. A group of picnickers (with three old saloon cars) were on the lock side and one of them flipped my rope over the bollard for me, then they proceeded to get on their hands and knees to look into the boat through the open side doors. I ignored them – I hate people being so blatantly nosy. Another very young student lad worked the lock. At 2.30 p.m. we followed Rosy up the 4.2 km pound to Ocean, the last lock. We’d changed departments from Haute Garonne to Aude. A very cheery resident lock keeper worked the lock using a control panel on straps like a cinema usherette’s tray of ices; while on the lock side stood a brand new control post with green button and intercom - a sign of things to come? We’d noticed there were new traffic lights below his lock (and above, as we left). He gave us cards advertising the resto at Le Ségala, where we were going with Bill later for a meal. It was 3.15 p.m. as we left the lock following Rosy along the summit pound, through the cutting and past the feeders from the Black Mountains. We found the quay at Le Ségala was full of Rive de France hire boats (it was reserved for them) and the last section of quay for other boats was filled with two dumped and left “dead” boats - a British Springer narrowboat and an old centre cockpit cruiser that had seen much better days. It was 4.00 p.m. We went through the bridge and winded by the quay while Bill attempted to tie up before the bridge, Rosy was on the bottom. We moored alongside Rosy and put extra ropes out. Bill said we’d wander up to the restaurant, Le Relais, around 7.30 p.m. The two groups of people sitting eating at table outside the restaurant were English. We went inside to get out of the sun. (The French thought we were odd wanting to dine indoors on such a lovely day but we normally spend every day out in it) We had Muscat for aperitif, a pitcher of house white wine with the meal; salad forestiére for starters, and then magret grilleé (grilled duck breast) with chips and a sort of ratatouille, then Bill had raspberry tart with ice cream and Mike had ice cream (three different varieties) and I had a rum and raisin plus passion fruit ice cream, followed by coffee. We thanked Bill for inviting us out for the meal which had been exceptionally good. On the quay they had been holding a petanque tournament when we arrived and now a funfair was under way, later there was live music. We went back to the boats, sat on our front deck and sank a couple of bottles of sparkling wine (Clairette de Die and a Crémant de Bordeaux) and sat outside chatting until it started to rain at 3.00 a.m. just as the live music finished. Mike and Bill had almost polished off a bottle of Bill’s dark rum.
Friday 12 February 2010
Friday 4th July 2008 Vic to Pont d’en Serny. C. du Midi
Sunny, clear blue sky and cooler. We were moving before nine after putting the small blue cruiser back where it was before we arrived and retrieving our rope that we’d used to moored it. 7.5 kms of winding shady canal to the first lock of the day at Montgiscard. The gates were closed but the lock was empty, so I got off and walked up to the lock house. No one there and a small girl said her papa was next door. I went to the “reception” where a very young schoolgirl came out to work the lock. She insisted on us having two ropes, we’d already got the centre ropes around the vertical metal bars set in the extended walls of the chamber, but she wanted one on the bollards by the tail end gates too. Mike threw a rope up and I put the loop on the bollard and dropped the rest back down to him, where he let it drape over the back deck, then I went to get Bill’s rope. Mike was already annoyed before we got to the lock as the adjustments he’d made to the rudder were still causing the boat to want to turn left. We pulled out of the lock into the top chamber of the old former staircase and paused while he gave the rudder a bang with the sledgehammer and a pinch bar. Followed Rosy 3.7 kms to Aigues-Vives. A wide narrowboat called Saint Margaux went past heading downhill, a little later an ex-Connoisseur hire boat went past also heading downhill. A middle aged bearded man (resident keeper) worked the lock for us. It was the last lengthened lock and 4.4m deep. We rose with centre ropes only attached to the vertical metal bars. Mike paused again to give the rudder another whack with the sledge hammer, much to the amusement of the keeper - I told him we were doing technical modifications! 1.5 kms to Sanglier, a two-rise staircase. Rosy went first again. The gates were closed and Mike could see the keeper was mowing the grass. Bill hooted, nothing happened; then a lady whose car was parked by the lock walked up to tell him we were waiting. Rose with just our centre ropes round bollards in the middle of the oval lock chambers. We left the top at 11.55 a.m. The next pound was 3.7 kms long but we stopped about half way at Pont d’en Serny bridge. Rosy moored under the trees but the overhanging branches were too thick for good satellite access so Bill said we could moor alongside Rosy as he was tying to the roots. It was 12.20 p.m. when we tied up. Mike left the car to stay where it was and started working on the angle grinders that failed while we were on the dry dock. Both machines had burned out a short length of wire leading from the brushes to the field windings. Exactly the same fault in exactly the same place on both motors. A possible design fault??
Thursday 3rd July 2008 Day off at Vic C. du Midi
Much cooler, overcast and dull. Raining when we woke up at eight, so we had a lie in. The 'fridge wasn’t switching on as the voltages were low, so Mike ran the engine after connecting the Markon up. As the generator was running I did some washing. He went into Castanets in the car to the Post Office to pay in the money to cover the dry docking bill. After lunch we went into Toulouse by car to find a ‘phone shop which would unlock the two Ericsson phones that Mike bought via Ebay, which were locked on the UK Vodaphone network. We drove down Rue de Bayard and had to turn off as Mike thought he was driving down a bus lane and traffic was one way, the opposite way to what we were going. We went to go around the block but then saw a cyber café with a notice in its window that said “Phones unlocked”. We parked in the underground car park at Place Jean d’Arc and walked back to the shop. Yes, the young Algerian guy said after he’d made two 'phone calls, could we come back around six o’clock as the bloke who did the unlocking would be there then? Yes, OK. We went back through the city and went into Jardiland, had a look round (a cockatiel insisted on telling both of us its life story but sadly we didn’t listen to its pleas for rescue) and I bought a hanging basket with a strange looking succulent plant that had pink, red and orange flowers, called a pourpier (portulac or moss rose), then we went for a drive in the countryside to the east of Toulouse. Called at a bank ATM for some cash and an MBK bike shop for a new sparking plug for the moped. We parked again in the underground car park at Jean d’Arc and went back to the shop at 6.00 p.m. No sign of the bloke yet, could we call back in an hour? We went walkabout. Sat outside St Sernin’s Basilica after having a very brief look inside. Still no sign of the guy who does the 'phones, could we come back the next day? Nope, we’re moving the boats, we’d be about five days before we get back. OK. Should be done before then. We drove back in the slow moving traffic. Back just in time to get the French weather forecast. OK next day and a slight chance of rain over Saturday and Sunday. Checked with Bill, OK for moving on in the morning.
Wednesday 2nd July 2008 abv Vic C. du Midi
Overcast and cooler, at last! We took Bill with us to Labège 2 to get some groceries. We went to find the SFR shop to sort out our ‘phone and said we’d meet Bill back by the seats at the entrance. The SFR shop was very busy. Young Audrey was very sympathetic, she 'phoned and it turned out that a piece of paper was missing, a proof of domicile in the UK! We had had that subscription with SFR for two years and yesterday they decided that their records weren’t complete and without any warning or explanation severed our telephone connection. We had taken our most recent bill for the Internet connection from SFR – no problems with that! It was not an acceptable proof of domicile! She took a copy of Mike’s carte gris (car logbook), but there was no address (it’s French and coupled to the Livret de circulation) on it. After two ‘phone calls and several faxes she said service would be restored within 48 hours. Bill was on his way to the seats in the exit having already bought his groceries - it had taken us over an hour to sort out our ‘phone. We said we’d be as quick as possible and asked if he wanted to put his stuff in the car, but he said no he’d rather sit and wait for us in the cool air-conditioned mall. That branch of Carrefour was certainly much larger than the one at Agen Sud, so we had trouble finding things. I was a bit annoyed to find no potatoes other than a few loose ones, same for onions. Bill had stocked up on heavies - beer, milk and wine. Back to the boat for a late lunch. Mike checked the boat batteries and found a corroded connection meant only half the batteries were connected to the system. He fixed that and we had lunch. Mike asked the lock keeper at Vic if there was a déchetterrie (rubbish disposal and recycling centre) local to the boat. He and Bill took the empty paint tins that the VNF refused to let us put in their bins – they said take them home with you – we were home! The people in charge of the déchetterrie wanted our postcode or where we came from, so Mike gave them the postcode for Valence.
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