Monday 24th - Thursday 27th September - St. Jean de Losne

Now for the hard work of packing up the boat for winter and loading the car!  We are not leaving for the U.K. until Friday morning so we had a few days to organise ourselves.
On Monday, Skip cleaned and painted the aft deck - finally it matches the rest of the deck - and Crew sorted out the galley utensils and dishes.  It was good to have a bit of a clear out and make some space, although I’m sure it won’t be long until those spaces are refilled!!  We had lunch with Henk on board as usual but Skip and Crew dined on the sausages that we needed to use up and had a lazy evening.
On Tuesday we took a day off work and drove to Nuits St. Georges, where we had a very good lunch and then on to Beaune to visit the Hotel Dieu, which Beaune is famous for.  We had visited the beautifully restored hospital twice before but for Henk it was his first time.  It was a lovely day, although the strong sharp wind meant coats and sweaters.  Another quiet evening watching TV.
After our trip out we were too tired to move Aphrodite to her permanent winter mooring spot so we moved her on Wednesday morning.  Crew had to clear the freezer a little so made use of some minced beef and made a Spaghetti Bolognaise for dinner.
We managed a few cleaning jobs before being ready to go for our last lunch on the waterfront.  We were blessed with beautiful weather, after a cold start in the morning and had a lovely lunch in Le Bouchon Losnais

 which has become our new favourite in St. Jean de Losne.  Then packing!!
So folks, our 2018 summer cruise is over.  The weather has been exceptionally good, even though some waterways were closed due to the lack of rain, which meant that we had to return to our home base on the same canal as last year.  That said, just being afloat in beautiful France is enough for us!
No thoughts about our direction for 2019 but we have our sojourn in Lanzarote, and indeed, Christmas and New Year to enjoy yet!  No doubt, Skip will put his mind to a schedule during the cool months of March and April.
So, dear readers, time to say ‘adieu’ once more!  A l’anee prochaine!!!

Sunday 23rd September - Verdun to St.Jean de Losne

Our last cruise of 2018 today!  We left Verdun at ten o’clock with a longer cruise than recently as we had decided to return to our winter base.  As rain was expected this evening Skip put our full canopy up, meaning that we could use the back deck in all weathers.

We had a longish run with two big locks, the first of which was Ecuelles, Crews’ most hated lock as it makes us sway all over the place with Aphrodite out of control! 

We arrived on the fuel pontoon just before 2 p.m. and topped up our tanks, leaving Henk to do the same.  When we got to Blanquarts’ we found our berth was taken so we had to moor on an outside pontoon - not ideal.  As there was nobody in the office today (Sunday) we would have to make do until tomorrow.

A very late lunch today as we didn’t settle Henk until almost three o’clock, so a late siesta too!  As Crew needs to deplete the freezer, it was agreed that we would have a Sunday steak dinner.  We even managed to dine on deck since we were all covered up.  The weather is much cooler now and we did get the promised rain although it arrived later than advertised.

39 km. 2 locks. 4 hours

Saturday 22nd September - Gergy to Verdun sur le Doubs

After an evening of light rain, we woke to blue skies and an autumn mist clearing from the river.  We didn’t leave until 10.30 as we had another short cruise today.
We arrived in Verdun at 11.15 and were seen in by the Capitaine, accompanied by a large excited dog.  We moored stern to but without any finger pontoons which makes it more difficult to keep the boat straight, which Crew is rather keen on but doesn’t seem to affect Skip at all!  The French couple on the next boat to us had a cat which seemed to be the object of the dogs’ excitement.
After settling in we had an earlier than usual lunch, whilst discussing restaurants for an evening meal.   We have stopped here several times over the years and we used to eat at a hotel/restaurant in the town but alas, it seems to have closed down.  There is another hotel very near the port but we don’t remember eating there so, with the aid of the Internet we found another, Le Caveau du Verdun, which looked interesting.  Skip walked across the bridge to suss it out and returned having booked us a table for dinner, mentioning that it was also a wine tasting cave.
We whiled away the afternoon then got ready for dinner, partaking of our usual aperitifs on deck beforehand.  The walk through the quiet old streets of Verdun was very enjoyable with many old buildings for Crew to admire.
The restaurant was very cosy with only a very small kitchen and we were served by the very genial maitre d’.  The meal was excellent and not too expensive - we will certainly pay another visit.  We were just about able to enjoy a digestif on deck but the weather definitely had the feel of autumn now!

8 km. 0 locks. 45 minutes

Friday 21st September - Chalon-sur- Saône to Gergy

We left just after ten o’clock under slightly grey skies, with a promise of some rain later and a much cooler temperature.  No locks today so a straight hour and a half run to Gergy, with the hope that we would find space this time and also that the restaurant might be open.  We were in luck......it seems that the restaurant was only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday during September!
We decided to have lunch instead of dinner as the weather was reasonable and we could enjoy the large under cover terrace of the restaurant.  We had an excellent meal at a very reasonable price - a pichet of wine (50cl) was only €6, although it was agreed that the white was superior to the red.  Now that we know the opening hours, we will be sure to stop here again.

We thought a quiet night in front of the TV would be a good idea but as we had no reception we watched and enjoyed the film The Guernsey Literary & Potato Peel Pie Society and then continued with Poldark.  A nice lazy evening!

17 km. 0 locks. 1 1/2 hours

Thursday 20th September - Fragnes to Chalon-sur-Saone

We left Fragnes at 10.20 for our short cruise to Chalon-sur-Saône with just the big ancient lock to descend at the end of the canal (10.6 metres).  Another beautiful warm day with a promise of the temperature rising even higher in the afternoon.
We were greeted by the very helpful Capitaine who found us two perfect mooring spots and who helped us in.  This comes at a price however, as the mooring fee is €23.90 and much higher in the summer months.  We have visited the beautiful city of Chalon many times and always fall for its’ charms.
We had an earlier lunch, followed by a siesta as usual in the heat of the day.....by now over 30c again and not much wind!
For a change we decided to try the Lebanese restaurant in the town.  Skip chose a menu for €25.90 and Crew and Henk decided on a Mezze, a mixture of small dishes, much like is served in Greece or Turkey.  All in all it was very good and we washed it down with a rather expensive but delicious Lebanese red wine.
The usual digestifs were taken on deck and not too late to bed.

8 km. 1 lock. 1 1/4 hours

Wednesday 19th September - Seurre to Fragnes

We left port just after 10 a.m., again in beautiful sunshine under a cloudless blue sky - we are so lucky to be enjoying these warm autumn days.  The plan was to stop in Gergy as there is a restaurant there.  Having said that, we haven’t been very lucky to find it open in the past and indeed it was once again closed!  We tried to moor Aphrodite on the end of the pontoon but it was far from a comfortable berth, so we decided to move on.
We took the decision to cruise a few kilometres along the Canal du Centre to Fragnes, where we had stopped earlier in the year with our friends, Gary and Tina.  On that visit however we did not visit the restaurant on the quay as we had enjoyed a large lunch in Chalon-sur- Saône.
We had to wait a while for the very ancient guillotine lock to be ready and as there was already a boat  waiting in front of us ( the lock only took two boats) Henk had an even longer wait!  We followed the boat in front of us at a miserable speed of around 4 kph, made more miserable for us as we had taken our canopy down to accommodate the lower bridges on the canal and the heat was unrelenting at that speed!
  We were helped in by a very nice young lady Capitaine who had extremely good English and told us that the restaurant would be open at 7 p.m. which was good news.....too hot for galley work!!
Another very late lunch, then some rest before a cool shower.
After our usual aperitif on the deck we ambled over to the restaurant just before eight o’clock and enjoyed a good, if a little expensive, dinner.  An earlier night ensued after a digestif - it had reached 32c during the day and we all found the heat fairly draining!

44 km. 2 locks. 4 1/2 hours

Tuesday 18th September - St. Jean de Losne to Seurre

Hello again folks!  After our convoluted trip back to Blighty we arrived back in St. Jean on Friday afternoon.  The plan was to have a couple of quiet days before cruising again, however as our Kiwi friends, Peter and Gwen were in port, staying on their boat which was on hard standing, that plan was negated!  We went out to dinner with them and Henk on Saturday evening, then invited them over to Aphrodite for lunch on Sunday.  So the party carries on!!  On Monday Skip took them to the station to start their journey home, staying in the U.K. for a couple of weeks before returning to New Zealand.
The plan for us today was to cruise to Seurre for lunch as it was just a short trip but the weather had other ideas!  Henk came over and showed us his weather radar which showed a storm heading our way - indeed it had rained somewhat overnight.  Shortly after ten o’clock the storm rumbled over us and continued for almost two hours, so we didn’t leave until 12.15 p.m.
We enjoyed a fast cruise on the lovely River Saône in glorious sunshine, as did Aphrodite and, after one big commercial lock, one and a half hours later saw us tied up in Seurre.  We had a very late lunch and planned to dine in town.  Skip in fact, walked into town and booked a table for us in the little pizzeria where we had lunched last year.
We had our usual aperitifs on deck then walked to the restaurant where we enjoyed a good meal.  Seurre is what Crew calls a ‘shabby chic’ town, dating back to the 5th century BC with many very ancient buildings......a favourite stop for us.
After digestifs on the back deck we retired a little later than we should have!

17 km. 1 lock. 1 1/2 hours

Sunday 9 th September - St. Jean de Losne

Crew allowed herself a mini lie-in before setting to work with her packing and cleaning.  Skip gave the hull a well needed clean after all the filthy locks and did some inside cleaning too.

The logistics of our trip back to England were very complicated as our car was still in Chalon-en-Champagne and all the trains from St. Jean to Chalon went via Paris, so an eight hour journey.  In the end we decided on a taxi to Dole airport, pick up a hire car, then drive to Chalon to pick our car up.  We would then to drive to a hotel near Calais for the night - a long day!  With this in mind we decided to have a last lunch with Henk, have a pizza for dinner and an early night.
So, dear readers, I will say ‘a bientot’ for the next five days - will resume the blog next Saturday!

Saturday 8th September - Pontailler to St.Jean de Losne

We left the marina at ten o’clock together and out onto the wide River Saône.  The boats were enjoying travelling at a faster speed, about nine knots in clear, weed free water.  Another beautiful day to cruise this beautiful river!  We were now back in hire boat country but,luckily not too .busy with them since it’s now September.
Our two locks were no problem, although a bit of a wait at both and we arrived in St. Jean around  1 p.m.  We had mailed ahead (several times!) to Blanquart’s Marina, resquesting two berths for us but without receiving an answer so we found two spaces ourselves.  Henk tied off next to us but his berth had a boat name on it so chances were that he would have to move at some time.  Our New Zealand friend, Carol appeared as we approached and helped us in.  She and her husband, Frank were just going to drive to Paris, then fly on to New Zealand......it was very good to see them, albeit for a very brief time!  Sadly, Carol informed us that our favourite restaurant, Sauconna, was closed down.....such a shame!  We had a short chat, waved them off then got ourselves settled in.
We had a light lunch then Skip found the phone number of La Cuminieres restaurant and booked us a table for dinner.  A few jobs were done , then a rest.
Our dinner was passable but quite simple, at €24 for theee courses.  We decided on an early night as we would be busy tomorrow, cleaning the boat and preparing for our trip back to England on Monday.  We are going back to attend the funeral of a dear friend and will return late on Friday 14th September to resume our cruise.  It means that we will have the car so we plan to visit some places by road and also by boat for the rest of the month.

33 km. 2 locks. 3 1/4 hours

Friday 7th September - Oisilly to Pontailler-sur-Saone

Back to civilisation today!  We left at the more human time of 10 a.m., choosing to travel together.  It had rained during the night but it was a beautiful morning with blue skies and sunshine.  We just had a problem with our penultimate lock on the canal but after a call, it was solved remotely.  In our last lock there was a ‘post box’ in which we had to deposit our telecommandes before the lock would operate - we had forgotten this from last year!
We arrived in the marina at Pontailler at 1.15 p.m. and squeezed into a space just about big enough for us both, at a pinch.  In the morning, Skip had phoned the restaurant, Hostel des Marronieres near the marina to book us a table for dinner, so no galley for Crew.....hoorah!!
We enjoyed a good dinner, if a little expensive, then back to Aphrodite for digestifs and chatting till fairly late.

17 km. 7 locks. 3 1/4 hours

Thursday 6th September - St-Maurice-sur-Vingeanne to Oisilly

We knew that the commerce would leave at 7 a.m. when the locks open so we decided on 8 a.m. as our departure time since rain was expected later.  At eight o’clock however, the barge was still in the lock with two red lights showing, meaning that the lock wasn’t functioning.  A VNF man was in attendance, clearing the lock of weed which seemed to be the reason for the malfunction.  We then had to wait another half an hour or so for him to pull out yet more weed - all the while Crew bemoaning the fact that she could have had another half an hour or so in bed!!  We eventually left the mooring at 8.45 a.m.
After two locks we caught up with the commerce who was just entering the lock, meaning we had to wait for him to pass through and re-set the lock for ourselves - quite a delay!  In fact each lock was now taking us almost half an hour, as opposed to around ten minutes - a long tedious day with 12 more locks to pass through yet!!
So as to save some time preparing dinner, Crew set to work with said task......nothing much else to do really!
We didn’t moor where originally planned as we spotted two dolphins and thought it wise to stop as we were not too sure about both of us mooring on the small pontoon after the Oisilly lock.  It meant one more lock tomorrow but, to be frank, we had all had enough by then anyway....arrival time 3.45 p.m.
Well deserved nibbles and drinks were partaken of on arrival!!  This was not a bad spot to stop at all, with the added bonus of six or seven Charolais cows to watch - as they were observing us!  We managed to dine outside - the promised rain having not arrived, although we did hear a few rumblings of thunder.  One of Henks’ daughters called him just as we had finished dinner.  When he returned we just stayed on deck for a while but decided to have an early night.....we were all pretty bushed after our long days’ cruising!

21 km. 12 locks. 7 hours

Wednesday 5th September - Piepape to St-Maurice-sur-Vingeanne

Aphrodite left at 9.30 as usual with Cornelis k. following on a little later.  With two fewer locks than yesterday and a perfect cruising day under a cloudless blue sky, we made good time ambling down our eleven locks, even though Crew got her rope jammed in a crack in the wall of the third lock, which required skilful use of a boat hook and some brute force and ignorance from Skip!
Unfortunately when we reached Cusey, there was simply no space at all for us, as most of the moored boats there were liveaboards.  We have stopped there two or three times before and just managed to tie off on some metal struts of the toilet block but even that was occupied!  So, onward and upward.....three more locks to Crews’ dismay!  The upside of that was three less locks tomorrow though!
The ‘mooring’ consisted of two blue dolphins, really meant for commercial barges, so we manoeuvred between them and moored on the bank with pins.  Twenty minutes or so later we helped Henk in, then a very well deserved beer was imbibed,  followed by our usual lunch.  Another upside of being here was that a little restaurant was just by the lock in front of us - bonus for Crew!!  I wandered over to see if it would be open and was very happy to see a sign to say it would open at 7.30 for dinner!  However (there’s always a ‘however’ isn’t there!). When Skip went over around seven o’clock to ask for a table at 7.30, he was told a definite no......not without a reservation!!  Words fail me!
At the same time a commerce appeared to cause us consternation as we were moored on his space really.  We watched him, or rather his wife, manoeuvre the barge right up to the lock gates and tie off there - have never seen that before!  The bargees were Dutch so Henk had a long chat with them.  It seems that they were making for St. Jean de Losne too so we were afraid that he would slow down our progress somewhat.....we will see.
There was a small outboard powered boat also moored in front of us with an American crew and a couple in a motor home with a British number plate, all of whom would have liked to eat in the restaurant, making a total of nine people the restaurateur could have provided for......entrepreneurship eh!!
In the end Crew put some potatoes in the oven to bake, cooked some peas with bacon and onion and Henk broke out his barbecue to cook our steaks, which we enjoyed on the back deck as the evening was balmy.

19 km. 14 locks. 4 1/4 hours

Tuesday 4th September - Langres to Piepape

We left at 9.30 with Henk just fifteen minutes or so behind us.  We have the difficult part of our cruise back to St. Jean de Losne now, with long days and lots of locks, although after the last two ‘up’  locks today, it’s downhill all the way!  We were to take our time getting back to our home base but due to a dear friends’ funeral on 13th September, we had decided to go back to England for a couple of days, to pay our respects.  This means we need to cruise every day, so long days ahead for us!
After our last two uphill locks we had a 5 km tunnel to negotiate!  Unfortunately we chose the wrong time to start the day and ended up having to wait three and a half hours to pass through the tunnel!  Two cruisers left an hour before us, going our way and then a commerce was passing through the tunnel the other way......c’est la vie!!  The tunnels are not difficult to navigate but the concentration required to hold a steady course in such a long tunnel is immense, since we have less than a metre each side of the boat to play with!  Skip earned himself a gold medal - not even touching the fenders once!!
Once through the tunnel a 3 km run saw us approach a chain of eight locks, at over 5 metres each.  It sounds daunting but the locks were very fast and smooth and we took just under an hour and a half to navigate them.  Then three more less deep locks saw us moor on the bank in Piepape around 5 p.m....a long day!
None of us had eaten so far and as, once again, Crew was in no shape to take to the galley, we had our usual lunchtime selection of cheeses, pate, ham, etc. and indeed, we even cracked open a tin of corned beef around 7 p.m.  Having slaked our thirsts with a beer or two, we enjoyed some red wine with our ‘feast’.  Then early to bed as the next few days will be arduous!

21 km. 13 locks. 7 1/2 hours 1 tunnel

Monday 3rd September - Rolampont to Langres

We left at 9.30 with Henk to follow on a little later, under grey skies with a promise of a couple of showers later.  The locks were very well behaved again - quick and gentle and, when in our fifth lock, the sun appeared.

Most of the lock houses so far have been occupied, so Crews’ habit of making over the derelict one’s was altered to making improvements to the current occupants design and decoration!   However on this stretch there were more empty houses for her to get her teeth into - it passes the time in the locks!

A nice tranquil easy run to Langres saw us tying up on the long concrete pontoon just after midday - Henk arrived forty minutes later.  As we did in Rolampont, we moored the boat facing the direction in which we had come, in order to get TV reception.....this we remembered from last year!
We had our usual lunch and siesta.  Skip toyed with the idea of walking into town but it is a long, very steep climb......a shame because Langres is an ancient fortified city, dating back to Roman times with many buildings of interest.
We decided on a quiet evening in watching TV, with just a bowl of soup and cheese for supper as Crew wasn’t feeling like cooking.

10 km. 7 locks. 2 3/4 hours

Sunday 2nd September - Rolampont

Quite a rude awakening for Crew as Skip decided he wanted to move the boat sooner rather than later - two spaces had been vacated on the pontoon and he wanted to relax and watch Match of the Day.  So, without even a restorative cup of tea we moved Aphrodite and re-settled - Henk decided to move too just in case another boat appeared.

As Skip was watching the football, Crew looked up and notice that a huge snail had attached itself to the window just above the TV......maybe he was interested in the football highlights too!
Although the boat needed a good internal clean, Crew decided that personal grooming was more of a priority......mañana for the cleaning!!
Skip went to the supermarket and boulangerie to keep our stocks up as we were aware that there would be no available shops fairly soon when we are in the ‘wilderness’.  We lunched on top in sunshine but with an occasional sharp wind, then some relaxation for us all.
There is a restaurant in Rolampont but obviously, it was closed on a Sunday evening, so Crew prepared a leek and potato pie to go with the large pork chops that Skip had bought in the boucherie section of the little supermarket.
We dined below as the cold wind had beaten us.  Henk left us around ten o’clock and we watched an hour or so’s TV before retiring.

Saturday 1st September - Foulain to Rolampont

We left together at 9.45 a.m. but as we arrived at the first lock we realised that it was automatic and we used our telecommande again.  Henk decided to let us go ahead of him in this case as it was easier for all of us if we locked through separately.  All the locks behaved themselves, although we lost a fender due to Skips’ lack of concentration coming out of our last lock.  Crew messaged Henk to ask if he could retrieve it for us, which he did and we moored in Rolampont at 12.45 p.m. in warm sunshine but a rather keen wind.  Unfortunately the pontoon was full (it only takes three boats) so we had to moor on a very awkward bank with mooring pins and Crew unable to get ashore.  Henk joined us a half an hour later, and Skip helped him in. We wanted to stay for two nights which we would do as long as we could move onto the pontoon in the morning!
We had a late lunch again, with Henk coming over in his dinghy, then Skip went across the canal to the supermarket for provisions.  Crew had the challenge of turning two beef patties into an edible cottage pie for three people for dinner, with the aid of some finely chopped vegetables.  Henk is not too keen on vegetables but he declared that the result was tasty!  Result!!!
A little TV and bed.

14 km. 7 locks. 3 hours

Friday 31st August - Chaumont to Foulain

We had told the VNF yesterday that we would depart at 9.30a.m. but the steady rain was not conducive.  They came around again and Skip said we would go when it stopped raining as our weather forecast suggested that would be around 11 a.m..  We left just after, even though it was still drizzling.  Unfortunately we omitted to look at both our forecasts as the alternative one was more correct and it only stopped raining at our last lock!  After just two locks the locks became manual and  a young VNF woman came to operate the lock for us.  She was joined by another young woman thereafter.  Again some of the locks were almost four metres deep - difficult to attach a rope to a bollard when it can’t even be seen!
We were very surprised that the girls worked through the usual lunch hour but glad that they did as stopping places were simply not available.  We arrived around 2.45, pretty damp and tired.   Foulain is what Crew calls a ‘country mooring’ with just two wooden quays, a bit the worse for wear.  So Henk had to raft up alongside us as a Swiss family had taken the first quay - luckily the canal was wide enough.  We got quickly settled and had a restorative and much needed beer, followed by a very late lunch.  Crew was willing to cook something in the evening but research was done and two restaurants found, not too far from the boat so it was decided we eat out again.
We partook of our usual aperitifs on deck at 7 p.m. then walked up the hill to the restaurant, passing a very closed looking hotel on our way.  When we arrived we were informed that no food was being served and that we should have reserved.  However the owner took pity on us after a quick discussion and offered to serve us a plate of charcuterie, which we willingly accepted as we needed to refuel after a fairly heavy day and a climb up the hill!  We were served with an excellent plate of meats and salad, some good bread and passable red wine.
Back to the boat for digestifs, retiring a little later than we should have!

14 km. 8 locks  1 lifting bridge. 3 1/2 hours

Thursday 30th August - Viéville to Chaumont

The plan was to leave at 9 o’clock but it was nearer 9.30 before we untied.  The forecast was for cloud all day but no rain and indeed, we left under full cloud.  We had a shower shortly before departing though, so the deck was wet, the ropes were wet, Crews’ gloves were wet and therefore Crews’ hands were cold and wet too!!  Not pleasant cruising weather.  In the distant hills an autumn mist hung over the trees and it’s not even September yet!
We had stayed in Chaumont last year for a week - our friends, Andy and Sally were to join us for a few days but literally an hour before they arrived, the toilet decided to break down, so they spent two nights in a hotel in town.  The logistics were not too good though as the town is up a very steep hill and more than a kilometre away - luckily they had their car.  The weather was not kind either with frequent bouts of heavy rain, so our memories of Chaumont are not too favourable.
After our third lock, Crew made herself a cup of coffee, mainly to warm her hands!  The locks all went well - apart from two almost 4m deep, which involved a bit of a stretch and we arrived on the quay around 12.30.  Henk arrived an hour later, so we helped him in and had a well deserved drink on the aft deck.
After lunch Skip went to the supermarket for supplies (a good kilometre walk) then went to the Capitainerie to pay our dues and ask if we could get a car to take us up into town to a restaurant we had visited three times last year.
We had an aperitif on the back deck at 7 p.m. and a car duly arrived at 7.30 to take us into town.  By road it’s about a three kilometre steep climb.....no way is Crew going to make that even when Skip tells her that he knows a short cut!
The meal was fairly good but pricey for what it was.  We retired to the saloon for digestifs.

16 km. 8 locks. Just over 3 hours

Wednesday 29th August - Vieville

We had decided to stay another night in this pleasant spot as the forecast wasn’t good for the day.  As it turned out it wasn’t too bad during the day with just the odd light shower but after a good amount of sunshine for a couple of hours around lunchtime, the rain began again and the temperature dropped considerably.
We took advantage of the warmth and lunched on the back deck, then retired for a siesta.  Crew could tell that Skip was getting restless when she rose to find him doing jigsaws on his I-Pad and listening to classical music!!
Henk decided to walk into the village for a bite to eat between rain showers but found the restaurant closed on arrival.  Although the bar was open he decided to return to his boat, only to be caught in a shower on the way back.  Crew prepared croque monsieurs for supper and we watched some patchy TV.

Tuesday 28th August - Froncles to Vieville

We decided to travel separately, as it is much quicker in the locks with just one boat, so we left fifteen minutes or so before Henk, at ten o’clock.  A much better day, weather wise with sun and cloud, not much wind and no rain, so a very pleasant cruise through the pretty countryside.
Three easy locks later (albeit the middle one was a stretch at almost 4m deep!) saw us before a lifting bridge just before the halte nautique in Viéville.  As it was well before lunchtime we were lucky and a VNF man was on hand to lift the bridge for us without delay.  They are tracking ourselves and Henk by asking us of our movements, which makes for an easier cruise.
We arrived around 11.30 and Henk followed on about 20 minutes later.  We had pre-decided to lunch in the village if possible at the Au Pied de la Roche........we were in luck, they were open and serving a very reasonable ‘menu’ at €12 for three courses.  As it turned out were were undercharged so we had a very reasonable lunch!!
After another lazy afternoon with Skip sitting under a tree, reading for quite some time and Crew below doing the same thing......followed by a sleep!
Henk came over for an aperitif but left fairly early as he was feeling a little under the weather so we went below to watch TV for a couple of hours, then bed.

9 km. 3locks. 1 3/4 hours

Monday 27th August - Donjeux to Froncles

We left alone at 10.15 as Henk was still in his dressing gown - he’s worse than Crew!  He will come on a little later.  Having cruised this route last year and looked up last years’ blog we knew that at the first lock (at almost 4m deep) it was going to be a struggle to get a line onto the bollards.  Indeed Crew couldn’t even see the bollard she was to tie onto!!  Not ideal cruising weather as a light drizzle was descending on us - however, worse was to come!  Around 11.30 a.m. we were the recipients of a deluge and we both got extremely wet.  The locks had changed character too, with a lot of swaying backwards and forwards.....a good job we didn’t get seasick!
We arrived in Froncles at 12.30 p.m., luckily in the dry and Hilary from the barge we moored behind yesterday took our lines, so settled very quickly.  The halte nautique is very efficient with water and power and is also a camper van stopover but sits in a valley with a wooded hill of around 75 metre height, so........no TV!
Skip went into the village for supplies and Henk arrived around four o’clock.  He came aboard for a beer and a chat for a while.  We all felt tired for some reason, so we parted company for a quiet evening and early bed for a change!

12.5 km. 5 locks. 2 1/4 hours

Sunday 26th August - Joinville to Donjeux

We left just before 10.30 a.m. - a fairly easy cruise today.  Although it was just before our third lock we caught up with a Dutch commerce, travelling very slowly.  The afternoon before he had passed us and taken one of Henks’ mooring pins out along with his power cable, which went into the water! Although he was going so slowly his undertow was very strong.  Having caught him up this meant our progress would be slow too - we hovered around for quite a while as we waited for him to ascend the lock.  Very kindly, as we caught him up again, he pulled to the side of the canal and let us pass.  Of course he then passed us after we had been safely moored to bollards in Donjeaux for about half an hour.....no problems this time!
Skip remembered that there had been a restaurant in the village but sadly a closed down one so dinner on board again!  In any case, it was Sunday, so closure is always a likelihood in France!!  We had some smoked salmon and a very nice rabbit terrine, which Henk had bought, for lunch on the back deck as the weather was sunny and warm - not the oppressive heat of days before though.
Henk came over around 6 o’clock with two videos to show us of his trip to New Zealand with his wife, Jon, a few years ago, so we watched one before a scratch meal of chicken fajitas and enjoyed the other one after dinner -excellent videos!

11 km. 4 locks. 2 1/2 hours

Saturday 25th August - Joinville

We woke to a very wet boat - it must have rained quite a bit overnight.  It also felt pretty chilly at 11c and fairly windy - a shock to the system after many days of searing heat!!
After drying off the boat, Skip went to the nearby supermarket for some supplies - we are aware that fairly soon we will be in the wilderness, with no possibility of restocking!  Henk took his electric bike into Joinville as his phone was on its’ last legs and he wanted to research a new one.  Also he can bring the heavy things without too much effort.  On our way to the supermarket we booked a table for dinner in the hotel.
We had to lunch below as it was still cold and windy up top, then had a few hours rest.
We partook of our usual aperitifs on the back deck though as a little sunshine had appeared, then made our way over to the hotel at 8 for dinner.  The food was pretty good, if a little expensive, although Henks’ tournedos did not come as expected.  He had asked for it to be served ‘bleu’ thinking it would be beef, however it turned out to be veal and was too well done for his liking so the chef appeared and remedied the situation.
Digestifs were taken below and we chatted until almost midnight.

Friday 24th August - Chevillon to Joinville

We didn’t depart until 10.40 as Crew overslept somewhat which wasn’t too serious as we only had a 12 kilometre cruise and a couple of lifting bridges which were automatic and not requiring a phone call.
The scenery was much improved as the wooded sides to the canal occasionally opened out, giving way to pretty farming countryside - still not many villages but much better than before.
We arrived just outside of Joinville where we had stopped before - a pontoon with limited power, right next to a hotel/restaurant, La Vinaigre.  We managed to moor at the end of the pontoon but Henk had to go further forward and use mooring pins and we had to share the power by using our splitter.
The hotel, which was also the Capitainerie, appeared to keep strange hours and we weren’t able to pay our dues till much later, whereupon we found out that the restaurant was closed in the evening.....Friday, I mean!!!
The good thing about this stopping place is that the supermarket was close by, so Skip bought some pork chops for Crew to cook for dinner......very generous!!
For the first time on this cruise, we actually dined below as the temperature was dropping considerably.  As we were going to stay for two nights, bedtime was a little later than usual.

12 km. 6 locks. 2 1/2 hours

Thursday 23rd August - Chamouilly to Chevillon

We left at 10.30 - our mooring for the night was to be a grass bank with no power.  The first few locks were deeper than before by half a metre but this meant they were not so violent, to Crews’ great pleasure!
We arrived in Chevillon about 1 p.m.and had to use pins to moor and a step so that we could get on and off the boat.  All the fenders had to be lowered too as the side was concrete!  A late lunch and a lazy afternoon followed.
Research on the hotel/restaurant just across the canal discovered that it was more like a commercial hotel going by the opening hours.......it was only open Monday’s to Thursdays but closed on Thursday evening.  Just our luck!!  So Crew had to take some chicken out of the freezer to defrost as we had no power and didn’t want to use the microwave for that purpose.
We dined on Crews’ version of a Thai curry and enjoyed the cooler temperature once the sun had gone down.  The weather was due to change in the next day or two, with rain forecast for Saturday so we made the most of the balmy evening.  Henk went to bed and we caught up with a couple of episodes of Poldark - expect to have caught up by the time we return home!

11 km. 5 locks. 2 1/2 hours

Wednesday 22nd August - Chamouilly

A rest day again as we had plenty of time in hand. It was going to be another scorcher so we got our jobs done before going to the hotel for lunch.  Skip and Crew had the four course set menu for €16.90 which was very good value but as Henk still wasn’t too hungry he just had a foie gras salad with toast, which he said was very good.  He then shared some of our cheese course.

A long lazy afternoon ensued with the temperature exceeding 30c again!  

The evening went as usual with drinks outside, then bed.

Tuesday 21st August - St. Dizier to Chamouilley

The fuel man arrived at 8.15 - fifteen minutes early!  It took around 45 minutes to deliver 250 litres as the nozzle had to be hand held since it was too big to fit our aperture.  Skip then went to the boulangerie and we left the port at ten o’clock.
A trouble free short cruise with just 2 locks and a lifting bridge saw us moored on the pretty quay in Chamouilly.  We had forgotten that this stretch of the canal has quite a few lifting bridges, some operated by the telecommande, some by detection and some needing a phone call.
We arrived around midday and having moored, we decided that we should turn the boat around as the sun would be on the back deck for most of the day.  So before we connected to power we did just that - much better, we could shade the deck with our sun blinds!
The electricity was a complicated affair - Skip had to post his credit card into a machine, whereupon he got a piece of paper with numbers on it that had to be put into the borne......16 hours for €8. All very odd!
The plan was to have lunch here as we were fairly early and we had enjoyed a couple of very good meals at the Hotel Cheval Blanc last year.  Unfortunately it was closed for holidays until tomorrow, so we broke out the cheese selection instead!  Plan B - lunch at the Cheval tomorrow!
Not too much in the way of work as it was over 30c.....too hot for anything strenuous.  We all decided that we weren’t very hungry in the evening but Henk suggested he would make some crepes, to which we readily agreed and Skip cooked some crispy bacon to go with them - delicious and just the right amount!
Henk went back to his boat and we watched one episode of Poldark before retiring ourselves.

8 km. 2 locks. 1 1/2 hours

Monday 20th August - Orconte to St. Dizier

We left at 10a.m. - a longer run with 8 locks.  The first lock responded to the telecommande and gave us a red and a green light, then after a minute or two, decided to change to two reds, which means a malfunction of some sort......typical, the first lock!  So after a few attempts to call an engineer, we managed to connect and help was on the way.
The canal is not particularly attractive, with not much surrounding scenery or many villages or houses to see, so a fairly boring cruise!  As the locks were so dirty, Crew fixed a rubbing board to the side of the boat as the rope surround was getting filthy and indeed, rubbing away when the turbulent cascade of water coming in bashed us against the lock wall......not our favourite locks!!
We arrived at our final lock and were waiting for the red light to go out, allowing us to enter - alas, it didn’t but against our principles, we entered anyway.  Unfortunately when we tried to activate the lock, the gates wouldn’t close!  It turned out that there was a tree branch stuck behind the lock gate.  So, another call to the VNF - Crews’ theory that if there is a problem to be had, it will happen at the first and/or the last locks was certainly true today!!
We arrived in St. Dizier after 2 p.m., got settled and had some lunch, after which Skip and Henk walked to the fuel office to arrange a diesel delivery.  Since they were able to get fuel delivered around 8.30 in the morning we decided to only stay one night and move on to Chamouilley in the morning, which is a much nicer port.
After our usual aperitifs we walked across the road to the hotel where we had dined well last year.  Maybe the chef had the night off sadly though as the food was nowhere near as good as our last visit.
Never mind-some you win, some you lose!
Digestifs then bed.

16.5 km. 8 locks 4 1/4 hours

Sunday 19th August - Vitry-le-Francois to Orconte

Skip had promised to help the couple moored next to us out of their berth at 9 a.m. as it was a very tight squeeze for them.  Slowly he made it out with no damage at all.  We left at 10 a.m. a little before Henk to make it easier for him to extricate himself from his berth.
The locks are all over 3 metres so a bit more time consuming.  The first went OK except that it was very dirty, so filthy ropes and fenders again!  We were given a telecommande for our next series of locks but on both getting settled in the lock the back gate wouldn’t close properly so after a few attempts at calling the VNF we managed to get through and help was on its’ way.  It being Sunday it took around half an hour for the engineer to arrive.  The locks on this system are also a bit more aggressive than the previous ones, so not all that pleasurable!
We arrived in Orconte about 1.30 p.m. and were greeted by the crew who we helped out this morning - a British skipper and his German wife.  They helped us tie up and then we all assisted Henk in behind us. When we stopped here last year Crew was somewhat annoyed that we had to pay €8 to stay overnight, without power or even a bollard to tie off on - we managed to use one bollard this time at least and we could have used a long lead to obtain power but we decided against as it was only for one night.
We had a late lunch and Crew planned to cook dinner.  The bank was under the trees so we had no need of the canopy and the temperature was absolutely perfect so went spent most time up top, even dining outside......lovely evening!  Added to which, it being Sunday, we paid nothing for the mooring - sometimes the typical French laziness works to our advantage!
For some reason we all felt quite tired so Henk retired before 10 p.m. and we had a relatively early night.

13.5 km. 6 locks. 3 1/2 hours

Saturday 18 th August - Vitry-le-Francois

A sort of rest day today as we were waiting for the engineer to come and sort out our boiler.  Pascale, the Capitaine, came over to tell us he would be with us around 1 p.m., so we decided to walk into town to visit the market.  However, unusually he turned up early, just before 11 a.m. so we revised our plans.
Henk came over to help with the technical translation and after almost an hour, the problem was solved ( we hope!).  We then walked into town for a mooch around the market.  Having found it, the stalls set up in the covered market, I have to say we were rather disappointed - not many stalls at all!  The one day that Crew gets to go to market and it’s below par!!  We decided on a beer stop so Crew nabbed a table in a cafe on the main square, whilst Skip went to try and book a table at the number one restaurant in Vitry, Made in France.  Unfortunately it was fully booked for the evening - a shame because when we visited before and wanted to try it, it was closed!  So we enjoyed a couple of beers, then walked back to the boat, buying a baguette on the way and booking the second best restaurant, La Grande Brasserie.
Then lunch on board, a rest and a few jobs before we met up for our usual aperitifs at 6.30 p.m.  we then made our way back into town and enjoyed a very good meal, finishing with digestifs on the back deck, then bed!

Friday 17th August - la chausse sur Marne to Vitry-le- Francois

Aphrodite left the mooring around 10 a.m., leaving Henk to his ablutions - ther’s no hurrying that man as, a little like Crew, it takes him some time to get going of a morning!  Before we left a catamaran came by, going our way so the locks would be against us unfortunately.  Then coming up to our second lock a commerce came past us, so we thought our fortunes had turned but the lock was still against us, alas, as we had caught up with the catamaran.  He obviously had to wait for the commerce to pass, so we were back where we started with all the locks against us!  However the locks were easy and we arrived in Vitry just before 1 p.m. and Henk turned up about an hour later.
Vitry is a difficult mooring with limited space on the side at the entrance to the marina and little space to reverse into the pontoon.  We made it safely, then later helped Henk to tie up alongside us at an angle.  Henk has to go front in as he has a dinghy at his stern so that seemed to work better anyway.
We chewed the fat for a little while then had a spot of lunch.
Dinner was to be on board as we had brought some steaks from England which needed using so Crew did some preparation after a siesta.
A nice lazy evening, eating, chatting and enjoying the wine.

15 km. 5 locks. 3 hours

Thursday 16th August - Chalon-en-Champagne to La Chausse-sur-Marne

Our plan was to go directly to Vitry-le-Francois but we had arranged for an engineer to come there to look at our boiler and as he wasn’t able to come until Saturday we decided to stop halfway.
We left Chalon at 10.30 and made very good progress with all three of our locks set our way and no ‘traffic’ en route.  By the time we arrived in La Chausse the thermometer had reached 30c and no wind so we set up the sun blinds as soon as possible to give ourselves some shade.
 We had stopped here last year with Martin and Clare and remembered that we dined well in Clos du Mutigny a short walk from the canal, so it was decided that we repeat the operation since it was too hot for Crew to be in the galley!
After some lunch and a siesta we reconvened for aperos on our back deck at 6.30 as usual, then walked to the restaurant for dinner.  The food was pretty good and the service impeccable.  The last time we visited all the street lights went out as we left the restaurant so Crew made sure she had a torch in her bag.  This time however the lights stayed on and the torch wasn’t needed until we reached the mooring!
As the temperature had dropped considerably (thank goodness!) we sat below for our digestifs.  I fear we enjoyed said drinks a little too long and didn’t get to bed until after 1 a.m.

17.5 km. 3 locks. 2 1/2 hours

Wednesday 18th August - Chalon-en-Champagne

Here we are again dear readers!  We arrived in Chalon on Monday early evening, having driven direct from Blighty.  A long day, so just managed to unload the car and get basically comfortable.  Crew had the forethought to bring a previously cooked and frozen chicken curry for a quick dinner.
Tuesday morning was spent stowing everything and cleaning the outside of the boat until at 1 p.m. our Dutch friend, Henk joined us.  We had a good catch up and a light lunch on board, followed by a siesta before reconvening at 6.30 for aperitifs, then into town for dinner.
More of the same on Wednesday and when we returned to the boats, Henk brought over some special old Dutch cheese and some Pedro Jimenez to drink with it........delicious!
We start the second leg of our cruise in the morning.

Friday 7th July - Chalon-en-Champagne

I apologise for the lateness of the blog - the hot weather made our packing very slow work - everything was an effort!  We decided to work through the day and treat ourselves to a meal out in the evening.
We had a very good meal in a restaurant just off the main square, so we thought we would try that again.  There was a very different atmosphere to our previous visit as we ate inside the restaurant last time.  It was such a warm evening this time that the terrace was almost full and we were lucky to get a table, however the meal was not as good as we remember sadly!
On Saturday we spent the time with more cleaning and packing then on Sunday Skip left to catch his 8 a.m. train, not to be back until around 4.30 p.m.  Dinner was consumed on board both evenings.

The first leg of our cruise has been excellent, with lovely villages and the beautiful scenery of the champagne vineyards to enjoy......not to mention the fabulous summer weather.  Just hope it hasn’t peaked too soon and that we can continue in the same manner in August and September.
So, dear readers, will say ‘au revoir’ for now - we will re-convene somewhaere around the middle of August.
Just for the record we cruised 786km and worked 186 locks.

Thursday 6th July - Mareuil-sur-Ay to Chalon-en-Champagne

We left at 9.30 a.m. as we had a longer cruise than the last few days and we wanted to make sure of our berth for the next four weeks or so.  This was to be our last days’ cruising for this half of our 2018  cruise so we enjoyed the scenery in the sunshine!  All the locks went well until the last (Chalon).  Crew twisted the pole and the lights reacted.....one red, one green.  Then just as we thought the gates were about to open, we were faced with two reds!  Always the last lock!!  We tied off on the bank and Skip went up to investigate.  After a few minutes, Crew noticed that the gates had indeed opened so waited for Skip to get back.  The lock was manned and for some reason the keeper had decided to flummox us!  However we managed to find a stern to mooring in the marina and got ourselves settled.  Again the sun direction was not ideal as it meant that the aft deck had the hot sun on it all day but, hey ho!!
After some lunch and a bit of a rest, Skip went to the station to buy his ticket for St.  Jean de Losne.  He came back not best pleased as the strikes were operational both on Friday and Saturday, so had to book his ticket for Sunday......not ideal as we were leaving on Monday!  Never mind.
We had a takeaway pizza for supper (not the best pizza in the world) and lounged on the aft deck as the day was cooling.  Then TV and bed.

27 km. 5 locks. 4 hours

Wednesday 5th July - Mareuil-sur-Ay

We decided to stay another night as the mooring was very comfortable and we had time to spare.  So a day of relaxation for us before we start packing up the boat in Chalon-en-Champagne.
Skip has started to look at train times to go to St. Jean de Losne to collect the car and has learned that the rail strikes may be a problem, ideally he would like to go on Friday so that we would then have two clear days to clean and pack the boat before going back to Blighty but.......we will see!
So the usual lazy lunch and siesta before a few desultory jobs then Crew cooked dinner (and herself) in the hot, hot galley.
Again we stayed up top till after 10 p.m. so that it was cool enough for us to retire below for a little TV, then bed.

Tuesday 4 th July - Cumieres to Mareuil-sur-Ay

Another easy day for us - we left at 10 a.m. in already high temperatures.  Rain was expected according to our forecast but it is not always right!  We managed our short cruise in a little over an hour and moored, stern to in Mareuil.........our first stern mooring in a while.  The only problem with it in this case was that the westerly direction was such that we would get sun onto our back deck for much of the afternoon, making our sun blinds redundant.
We remembered stopping here last year, just after we dropped Martin and Clare off at Epernay station for their journey home.  It must have been a Sunday or Monday, however and the little bistro on the corner close to the port was not then open.....not so this time though, so we tidied ourselves up and went over for lunch.  It was fairly full and we had to eat inside as the tables outside were occupied. The lady serving was very helpful and jolly and we had a good, if large, lunch.
Again it was much to hot to do anything in the way of work so we whiled away the afternoon reading and resting.  The promised rain didn’t arrive!  Once the sun started to disappear we were able to sit on the back deck comfortably which we did until almost 10 p.m. again.  Then some TV and bed.

10 km. 2 locks. 1 1/4 hours