Friday 28th June - Schierstein

We have decided to stay here for five nights, so first of all we had to find another mooring for four nights.  The ‘boys’ walked over to the next yacht club and were told that we could stay on the guest pontoon  - no problem.  We moved over around 10 a.m. before it got too hot and settled in. The man they spoke to was very nice and told them that the little tent at the end of the pontoon would be open for drinks at 6 o’clock and that we were welcome to join them.......nice!
Late morning we walked into town to find the chandlery, looking for a chart of the Mosel which we will be navigating in August, after our summer break in Blighty.  A twenty minute walk in the growing heat of the day found us at the chandlery and asking the man there for a chart.  Disappointingly, he said that they were no longer published.........time to find a beer!
We found a bierkellar on the waterfront which had a menu.  They also had a special board with prawn cocktail on it - that’s what we went for!  Again......it was huge and came with toast.
Just after 6 p.m. we made our way to the tent, for a couple of beers we thought!  We were warmly welcomed and tried to fathom out what the system was.  They had brought some snacks and salads and meat was being cooked on two portable cookers.  It seems that, once a month, they meet there and have a ‘jolly’- bringing their own food and notching up drinks on a notepad.  We started with beer but graduated to pretty decent white wine (beer on a ‘special’ at €1 and a large glass of wine at €2!) and eventually got chatting to the people on our table. I’m afraid to say that the conversation was in English.....our German is simply not good enough!!
So, instead of a couple of beers, we ended up staying for three and a half hours - was a lovely interesting evening.
A film before bed.

Thursday 27th June - Erfelder Altrhein to Schierstein

First of all, apologies for the lack of publishing but we’ve had no internet since Sunday - would never have believed that it would worry me but the last few days have been quite stressful......who would have thought!!  We will have to sort it out when we get home.
Yesterdays’ blog was not quite finished.  When we got back to the boat last night,   Skip went on deck to water the plants and was attacked badly by the pesky mosquitoes and came back inside in a bad state.  They had attacked his face, his eyes were very swollen and his speech was slurred, as if he had just returned from the dentist!  Very worrying.
His face was still somewhat swollen in the morning but he assured Crew and Henk that he was fit to cruise, so we left the mosquito hell hole at 10 a.m.  We had intended to stay for two nights but did not want a repetition of that horror.....they must be very ‘special’ mosquitoes!
There had been hardly a breath of wind in Erfelder - part of the problem we think - so it was lovely to be cruising fast with plenty of air!  There was not too much traffic about so we enjoyed our cruise very much, finally spotting some vineyards on the surrounding hills and the scenery much more pleasing to the eye than the previous industrial areas.
We arrived in Schierstein at 12.45 and found ourselves a couple of berths near the clubhouse of the Wiesbaden Yacht Club.  There are six yacht clubs in this harbour, so plenty of choice.  When we found the harbour master, he informed us that sadly, he could only accomodate us for one night as he had five boats coming in tomorrow for the weekend.  But, still five more yacht clubs to choose from!
So we settled and had lunch as usual.  Schierstein is what you might call a suburb of Wiesbaden, being about 5 km away and is a busy little town with plenty of bierkellers, shops and restaurants.
We went to the clubhouse restaurant for dinner, which seemed to be busy all day.  We all ordered calves’s liver, which we all love but found much too large a portion (seems to be a German thing!).  It appears that we could have asked for a small portion, which will be our modus operandi from now on - hate to waste good food!  We adjourned to the terrace to finish our wine and go talking to an interesting foursome.....three women and one man.  The really chatty woman was from Costa Rica

originally but had lived in the U.S., the U.K. and now in Germany....she had had an interesting life to say the least and had us in stitches for an hour or so.  This is what boating is all about - the peoplewe meet!
Back to Aphrodite, a digestif, a DVD and bed.

38 km 3 hours

Wednesday 26th June - Gernsheim to Erdfelder Altrhein

We didn’t leave until midday as shopping needed doing - as the crow flies, the shops were less than a kilometre away but the road route was around a 2km walk.  Henk arrived back first on his bike with the heavy stuff, then Skip later, with the rest.  It was way too hot for shopping, so we were all looking forward to being on the move to get some air.  

There was not much traffic around so the short run on the river was easy with a lovely breeze - Crew is actually wearing a dress today!!!  We turned off the river for a 6km run to the port, where there are three marinas.

We found two vacant berths alongside each other and got settled in the, by now, immense heat of the day.  As we sat on deck, imbibing our ‘arrival beers’ a lady came swimming by and stopped to chat.  She was full of praise for the port, saying that we were near a nature reserve and that there were natural springs in the water.....indeed, Crew did spot some bubbles rising in the river.

We had some lunch and decided to walk into town for dinner later - Crew was not looking forward to this as the temperature had risen to just under 40c!!

It was a very, very hot walk and we were constantly buzzed by mosquitos.  It took a good twenty minutes before we found a Bier Keller, which had a menu of sorts - mostly snacks really but we couldn’t be bothered to walk any further.

Tuesday 25th June - Speyer to Gernsheim

We left our lovely harbour just after 10 a.m., again on a beautiful sunny morning.  The current is not quite as strong as it was now, so we were cruising at around 18 kph, instead of 20/21 kph.  It is very different cruising for us - no longer the slow, tranquil canals of France, but more like being at sea!  So everything has to be stowed safely and locker doors locked to prevent things falling out.  And the scenery is very different too - the river is lined by trees and a lot of industrial buildings, although when we get further down river we are assured that we will be seeing castles and beautiful scenery....can’t wait!!

There are ferries crossing from one side of the river to the other - three, in fact, today.  These have to be avoided of course and we also always need to pass the barges on the correct side, which is not always obvious - they should show a blue board on one side, which we have to pass on but it’s sometimes difficult to see or indeed, sometimes they do not show one!  So we have to keep our wits about us!

As we approached our harbour for the night, a barge was travelling in the opposite direction so we had to pass behind him and go for the harbour entrance from upstream.

After the lovely port in Speyer, we were a bit disappointed to find that we were in a commercial port, with a giant crane for a view!  The crane was loading containers onto a Dutch barge - quite fascinating to watch but a smidge noisy to say the least.  And by now, it was over 30 degrees and hardly any wind, so we were sweltering!

After a lunch of smoked salmon, we retired below for a rest.  Crew reading on the bed with a fan playing on her, having tried, and failed, to get the aircon working.....really need to get it fixed!

We assembled our hot selves on the aft deck for an apero and then made our way over to a hotel, restaurant come bier keller for dinner.  We sat on a terrace overlooking the river, which was nice and finally, once the sun started to go down, a little cooler.

We all decided on fish, Crew smoked salmon for the second time today, which was very good and served by an efficient English speaking waiter. Back on board for a digestif and bed.......still very warm!!

Monday 24th June - Speyer

It was so good to go up on deck on such a lovely day, surrounded by a large expanse of water.  The forecast suggested that we would reach 32c today, so we were thankful that there was quite a strong breeze to keep us cool.

No plans for today, so we just poodled around all morning, doing odd jobs - was too warm to be very active.

Not having any internet service was problematical as far as writing the blog is concerned and also for planning our stops on the river, as Henk only has a limited chart and we have a book, which is quite detailed but not as easy as reading a chart.  Skip has limited internet on his phone and since Henk has a different phone service, he can get more information so we are having to have briefing meetings to decide on our next move.

Skip prepared melon and ham for lunch, washed down with an unspecified cheeky little white number - not the best but quaffable!

Sunday 23rd June - Karlsruhe to Speyer

We left port in improving weather at 10 a.m.  Unexpectedly, there was quite a lot of traffic....we were thinking that the big boys may be resting on a Sunday, but no, we came into contact (not literally thankfully!) with quite a few.  Being Sunday, of course, there were also plenty of speedboats around, again causing more wash than the barges!  So a bumpy ride 

We left port in improving weather at 10 a.m.  Unexpectedly, there was quite a lot of traffic....we were thinking that the big boys may be resting on a Sunday, but no, we came into contact (not literally thankfully!) with quite a few.  Being Sunday, of course, there were also plenty of speedboats around, again causing more wash than the barges!  So a bumpy ride for us.

We arrived in Speyer around 12.15p.m. - a beautiful lake with four marinas..... very open and surrounded by trees and green spaces.  We parked, rafted up on the guest pontoon and made our way to the clubhouse to ask where we should be - with a cold beer in mind!

The clubhouse was very nice and we received a warm welcome......three beers were dispatched quickly. Before going back to the boats, we booked a table for dinner on the terrace, just in case it got busy on a Sunday evening.   We had to wait for the harbourmaster to have his lunch and chats to friends but eventually he came over to us and sorted us out.  In fact we stayed where we were and Henk just moved to a nearby pontoon.

We asked about WiFi, as our Orange France SIM doesn’t work here......the answer was a resounding ‘No’!   So we must expect further disruptions to the blog I’m afraid.

We did a few chores and had the usual lunch and siesta, then re- convened for aperos just before 7 o’clock.  There was a party of sixteen people dining and a few more tables were occupied too.  The menus seem to be much of a muchness in all the yacht clubs, with not that much choice and quite a lot of pasta.......not what we expected in Germany!  Skip and Crew had a very nice salmon and spinach concoction, whilst Henk ordered a mixed fish dish, all of which was delivered with a mountain of tagliatelle!!  Very passable and reasonably priced.

No TV here, so a DVD again before bed - in fact, Love Actually again!

44 km  2 1/4 hours

Saturday 22nd June - Karlsruhe

We decided to stay one more night, even though the port is not very picturesque, with industrial buildings all around.  The other factors are that the weather was dull, cool with rjain promised and the free WiFi is very good!
We have so much time to get to Winningen that we can afford extra days off.  This morning, Henk found a port before our original one, which is nearer for us and looks very nice, so we have agreed to stop there tomorrow.
We had our usual lunch and did jobs and lazed around.
Crew cooked pasta for dinner and DVDs after as
TV reception was bad again.

Friday 21st June - Beinheim to Karlsruhe

We left at 10 a.m.for a quick Rhine cruise, now with no locks until we get to our summer destination, Winningen, where we will leave Aphrodite for four weeks and return to Blighty, to see family and friends and, of course, there is cricket!!
The cruise was fast and furious with the current running at around 9kph, giving us a speed of 21 kph - it feels a bit like being at sea!
We arrived in port at 11.30 a.m. and although it was a bit early, we were settled quickly and beers were passed around!  In fact, Henk and Skip had to share a large beer as stocks were dangerously low - we needed to find some shops!  So, another snack lunch and the ‘boys’ went shopping.  This time they managed to find each other and Henk carried the heavy stuff on his bike and Skip, the rest.
This marina didn’t have the ambience that our previous two had, so we didn’t bother to book a table for dinner in the clubhouse......we assumed, correctly, that it wouldn’t have the popular draw of our previous two ports.

Correct assumption - there was just one waitress, who wasn’t quite the full ticket, so service was very slow!  However, the food was very passable, as was the wine.
We said our goodnights to Henk and watched some very iffy TV for an hour.

27 km 0 locks 1 1/2 hours

Thursday 20th June - Beinheim

As it was a sunny morning, Crew changed the bed and put the washing on.  However by the time the machine had finished another heavy storm had arrived, so the wet washing stayed inside!
It lasted an hour or so, then warm sunshine again - lunch on board as usual.
Crew cooked some left over steak for dinner and, as it turned out, unwisely dined on deck.  We both got bitten to pieces by mosquitoes!  We finished hastily and move down below for some TV, then bed.

Wednesday 19th June - Kehl to Beinheim

Firstly, apologies for lack of blog........due to the lack of internet access!!   We left Kehl at 10 a.m. under blue skies.  Our first encounter was with a very fast sports boat which caused a huge amount of wash and some of our oil lamps went awry, causing Crew to go on a rescue mission!  The small boats  cause a much stronger wash than the big boys.  We had to wait an hour before we could lock down as there was a hotel boat coming up and then for the extra long barge and two speed boats that we were sharing the lock with.
Another wait at our second lock for two barges to come up, so we added almost two hours to our cruising time, arriving in port at three o’clock.  We just had a snack lunch on board as Henk booked us a table for dinner in the on-site restaurant.  Crew was talking to a fellow Brit, who said that the restaurant was an experience.......intrigued!!
The ‘experience’ was the mad waiter who served us......he said he was born in Italy but when he was six, he was abandoned by his parents in France and, although we are in France now, everyone, including the mad waiter, speaks German. We were also treated to some singing of sorts!  Crew was beginning to feel like Alice in Wonderland!!!!
The meal was average although Skip had a very good sea bass.  The wine was good but slow in coming.
Digestifs on Aphrodites’ back deck, before saying goodnight to Henk about 10.30 p.m.  then just before midnight a heavy storm broke over us, causing Skip to batten down the hatches.

42 km 2 locks 5 hours

Tuesday 18th June - Kehl

It promised to be another beautiful day and woke to sun streaming through the windows.  Crew managed a bit of general cleaning, although it was already too warm to do anything very active and Skip and Henk went to the shopping centre in town - Skip on foot and Henk on his electric bike. They did end up in the same place but somehow missed each other........as they were quite a time, Crew suspected that they had found a bar!!
We had a very meagre lunch as Henk had bought 18 expensive giant prawns to barbecue in the evening........worth it, they were delicious!
TV Reception was very sketchy again, so a couple of old Scott and Bailey DVDs.

Monday 17th June - Lahr to Kehl

We left in beautiful sunshine at 10 a.m.  We had a long wait for our first lock of almost an hour as two commercial barges were locking up but once we were in the lock it only took about 15 minutes to descend the 18.5 metres.  We shared our next lock with a commercial barge for the first time this year which also took a while.
A couple of kilometres from our destination, a big heavy barge approached us at speed with a very large bow wave, followed closely by a large hotel boat - promising much turbulence!  Well folks.....we have been in calmer seas!!  We bounced around almost until the port and Crew had forgotten to secure the crockery in the galley, so a few unladylike lurches down below followed!
The current was running pretty fast now which is why the barge had to give it some wellie of course and with it behind us we whooshed into the port a bit too quickly.  We really should have gone past the entrance and then turned to enter against the current - mistake!
Nevertheless we made it OK and proceeded to find a good space for ourselves.  The marina is very long with plenty of spaces.  We each found a suitable spot and went up to the clubhouse to report our presence.  The port is protected from the river by a high bank and has a very nice bar and restaurant, where quite a few people were still lunching.  We ordered three beers and were given forms to fill in to register ourselves and enjoyed our beer.  Bouncing on the water makes you very thirsty, so we ordered three more!  Then the very friendly waitress came to settle the finances.....none of these ports are very cheap to moor but normally the facilities are pretty good, including WiFi.
We decided to stay for two nights and as the restaurant was closed on Tuesdays, we booked a table for tonights’ dinner.
Then back to Aphrodite to settle in properly and a spot of lunch, followed by the usual siesta (it’s getting to be a habit!).
We had an aperitif on the back deck at 7 p.m. and went to the restaurant at 7.30 p.m. The food was very good and we tried a few local wines.  We don’t know too much about German wines, so felt it necessary to investigate of course!  As it was a balmy evening we dined on the large terrace....lovely.

25 km 2 locks 3 1/2 hours

Sunday 16th June - Breisach to Lahr

We left port at 9.30 a.m. under grey skies.  The current is running around 7/8 kph, so we make good time to our first lock.  For some reason the lock keeper saw fit to keep us waiting for about 20 minutes before closing the gates - we were just three cruisers in the lock.  Our second lock went quickly though and we arrived to a welcome from the Capitaine and advised where to moor - a
young German man helped us in too.  The Capitaine came over later and informed us that the in-port
peniche restaurant was open all day.......result!!  Henk went over and booked a table for us at 7 p.m.
We had the traditional end of cruise beer, followed by a melon and ham lunch.  By now the sun was shining - very pleasant!
We reconvened on our back deck for aperos at 6.15, then walked over to the peniche at 7.  We didn’t even look at a menu as Henk had eaten a very good steak there before and we were all in the mood for a good steak!  It was good indeed but, at 300grams........huge!!  Needless to say, Crew could only consume less than half of hers, so it came home with us and was deposited in the fridge!!
After watching a not very good film and a digestif - bed.

42km 2 locks 4 hours

Saturday 15th June - Breisach

The plan was to depart at 9.30 but there was a problem.  Henk had discovered a diesel leak in his engine room, which had to be put right......not a quick or easy job!  So it looked as if we were staying one more night.  By the time he had been successful, it was almost midday so, as the weather had improved, we decided to go out for lunch.
It wasn’t that easy choosing a restaurant, as most of them seemed to be cafes, serving snacks.  In the end we plumped for Saigon, a Vietnamese restaurant.  We were very surprised to find that the wine was very good, a large glass at €3.80 and the food good and reasonably priced too.
There had been a small market in the square, which finally dispersed after we had eaten, revealing the fountains emerging from the ground.  After settling the bill, we stayed another few minutes being amused by the children (and a dog!) running in and out, all getting thoroughly wet!
Breisach is a pretty town, which was badly bombed during World War 2 and so the buildings are mostly not that old but very well planned and tastefully done.  There are some older buildings behind a fortification up the hill, along with a lovely old church.
We retired to our boats for an afternoon rest and spent the rest of the day on ‘coot watch’ and relaxation.  The baby coots are venturing out and giving Crew serious anxiety - one launched himself onto the water but somehow made his way back to Mum.....relief!!
We watched two films during the evening, although once again, it was difficult to hear parts as the rain was so hard at times - I think we need to somehow increase the volume control on the DVD player!!

Friday 14 th June - Breisach

Another lovely lie in for Crew - could get used to this!  Although it was expensive to moor here €2 per metre, which adds up to €26 per night, we decided to stay for two nights.
The weather was disappointing and not as forecast - rain on and off and not too warm. About midday, as it was a little brighter, Skip went into town for supplies.  A lovely town with a beautiful square, full of bars and cafes.  Henk was not feeling 100% so we lunched alone on Aphrodite.
Crew is happy to report that a new chick has hatched - the mother revealed the whole nest and the count was now 4 chicks but, alas, only two eggs left.  The father was still busy foraging for food for them all.  The chicks are venturing out from the nest too - strangely, they have red heads with a little orange plumage.  Presumably that develops into the familiar plumage of a coot.  One of them fell through the gap in the pallet where the nest is, which gave both the father and Crew some very anxious minutes, until he eventually managed to clamber back to the nest and scuttle for cover underneath the mother.  Wonderful to be able to watch so closely!
Henk appeared after lunchtime and declared himself fit enough to go shopping and returned with a bottle of Asbach, a German brandy, for us.
We contemplated going out to dinner but decided that some chicken we had needed using up.  TV still not a very good reception so another DVD - The Crown.  A quiet day!

Thursday 13th June - Kembs to Breisach

We woke to bright sunshine, although with a morning chill to the air, and left port at 9.30 a.m.   Exciting day today - we have the Grand Canal d’Alsace to navigate, which will ultimately lead us to the mighty River Rhine.  There is a a fast flowing current (with us thankfully!) and fairly long breaks between large, deep locks.  The drawback being the usually pretty long waits for the locks to be prepared.  Of our four locks today, the two deepest are 14.7m and 15.5m respectively.
It’s a pleasant trip, although not very scenic, with quite a lot of industry along the banks - mostly hydro-electric power stations and container ports.
Aphrodite is maintaining a speed of around 17 km......a very different kind of cruising to that on the small canals, being buffeting about by the commercial barges and a fairly strong current.
As we were in our last lock we got a reply from the Capitainerie in Breisach, telling us that there was space for us in the marina - Skip had mailed them two days ago, making a request!  However we were cock-a-hoop as there are two ports in Breisach - one in France and one in Germany - and, after two previous visits here, we had not managed to moor on the German side.  So today folks, we are in Germany!!!
It is a better side to be as the town of Breisach is here and the French marina has no restaurants, shops,etc.
A very nice German welcomed us, warning us that there was no water to be had - not a problem as we had half a tank left.  So he helped us tie off and said we should go to the office to obtain a leaflet giving information about the port, etc.  Nice man, nice place - we have decided to stay for two nights.  Apart from no water, the electricity was a long way away, needing our extra long extension lead.
But.......there are advantages here!  We didn’t notice when we moored, that a female coot was sitting on her nest at the end of the finger.  She had three chicks and also four unhatched eggs - the male was very busy collecting tiny nuggets of food for her and the chicks.  Such a treat for us to watch them, whilst trying not to disturb them of course!
We decided to go for dinner in town and picked a restaurant, Cafe Etoile.  It was situated on a hill, so an uphill climb on the way, although it wasn’t too far.  Unfortunately it turned out to be more of a tapas restaurant with not many choices, so we made the best of it and ordered bits and pieces.  The view was lovely though.
A bit of TV and bed.

44 km 4 locks 5 1/2 hours

Wednesday 12th June - Kembs

No rain this morning but quite chilly.  Skip did some on deck cleaning whilst Crew put the washing on, hoping for some sun later.
Henk has an electric bike with a big box on the back - useful for carrying heavy items.  He wanted to go to the supermarket later for supplies but Skip walked into town earlier (a 3 km round trip) for bread for lunch.  Henk then went after lunch for the heavies!
We had no plan for an evening meal as we had eaten very well for the last two days, so we just fiddled around with odd jobs and had another lazy evening.  The rain was affecting the TV, so more DVDs.

Tuesday 11th June - Kembs

Could get used to lying in bed of a morning, looking at the newspaper and cracking Sudokus!  It promised to be another dull, rainy day, so we planned to go for lunch again - this time at Le Petit Kembs restaurant.
Skip did some deck cleaning and tested the remote control for the anchor, as, if anything goes wrong on the Rhine, we can drop anchor.  It just needed a new battery!
At midday we took the ten minute walk to the restaurant. We were hopeful that they would be able to accommodate us as we’d been unable to reserve a table.  The lady looked a bit doubtful but sorted out a table for us - we were lucky as everyone else had reserved and two people were turned away.
The food and service were excellent, if a bit expensive but we all enjoyed our lunch very much.  Back on board for a digestif and Henk put loops in two of the fender lines.  Crew hit on the idea of using them in the big locks on the Rhine, as we have to tie off on a central floating bollard and a shorter rope is preferred.
Another rainy evening, although not as heavy as yesterday, so we were able to watch TV.

Monday 10th June - Kembs

We will be staying here for at least three nights as fairly constant rain is predicted for the next few days and although now we can have our complete canopy up (no more low bridges!) it’s never pleasant cruising in heavy rain.
Skip went into town looking for a boulangerie- without luck!  It is about a 2 km run to a supermarket and boulangerie........Crew doesn’t do running!!  However he did discover that one of the two restaurants was open today, both for lunch and dinner, so we decided to dodge the showers and go for it for lunch.
City Grill furnished us with a passable lunch at a reasonable price and we made it back to the port without getting too wet.  We adjourned to Aphrodites’ ‘conservatory’ for digestifs and Henk making loops on Crews’ new ropes - we bought four new main lines for forward and aft and then 16 fender ropes.  He finished the last two main ropes.......just 16 to go!!
We retired for a siesta, then Crew got the ironing done.  The rain was now heavier and more persistent now - even so we tried to get the TV going.....it wasn’t liking it much but was more or less watchable until the rain became even heavier.  So we had to resort to DVDs, although the sound is not as loud as the TV programmes and the noise of the rain made listening very difficult!

Monday 10th June - Kembs

Sunday 9th June Mulhouse to Kembs

Apologies readers.......there was a problem with the blog and it seems that I have jumped the gun and published about the start of our day.  So........to continue!
Eventually, the damaged boat was reversed out of the lock and tied off on the side - then the Pompiers’ divers went in to inspect the damage.  However we were not allowed to manoeuvre until the divers were out of the water, so we still had to wait.  Eventually we locked down at 12.20 p.m. just in time to beat the lunch break.  As it was the final lock on this system, we had to fill in some paperwork before descending.   It was a guillotine gated one and as the gate started to lift it pushed the boat back quite strongly, making it difficult for Crew to hold on to her line - Skip took to the wheel to stop us backing into Henk!
We had worked out that we would arrive in Kembs around one o’clock, thereby missing the forecast rain - however we are now at least two hours behind and of course, it started to spit!  Hey ho......the best made plans of mice and men!
A few kilometres from the lock we came across a large kayak rally.  They had put out red and white buoys in narrow lanes for the racing and it made navigating difficult as they were set just about the width of Aphrodite.  We had just breathed a sigh of relief having come to the end of the lanes when we heard a big bang- it seemed we had hit one of the buoys (submerged we think) and a red one was stuck under our bathing platform!  An interesting day - am thinking that we shouldn’t have set off this morning!!
 To reach Kemp’s port, we had to branch off the canal and enter a narrow canal, the Huningue for about 2 kilometres.  We had trouble getting into a berth as we had a depth and current problem - a perfect end to a perfect cruising day!!!!  Absolutely everything seemed to be going wrong!
We got settled in a hurry, just after 2.30 p.m. as it was now raining harder - then another quick late lunch.
The Capitaine came over around six o’clock and gave us the info about the in port peniche restaurant.  Unfortunately it was under new management and will be closed until August - is it Friday 13th again???
The weather forecast says to expect rain on and off for the next three days, so our departure date is, as yet, unknown.  The swans, ducks and coots are loving this wet weather however.
Crew rustled up a corned beef hash, courtesy of Mary Berry - a store cupboard supper - and a quiet evening with DVDs

20 km 1 lock 4 1/2 hours

Sunday 9th June - Mulhouse to Kembs

We made an appointment to be at the one and only lock today at 10.30 a.m.  When we arrived, there was a problem - two boats were in the lock, going our way but they didn’t seem to be moving down at all.  Another boat was in front of us, waiting to lock through too - they moved their boat to the side and let a lady off, who came to tell us what happened.  The boat at the back of the lock had somehow got stuck on the concrete sill and ended up at a 45 degree angle, taking in water.  The Pompiers arrived, presumably to pump their bilges out.  Needless to say this meant a long wait for us now - not a good start to the day!!

Saturday 8th June - Mulhouse

Another lie in.......life is good!!  Our 45th Wedding Anniversary today - where did all those years go??  Skip had booked us in for lunch at a 2 star Michelin restaurant, Il Cortile, which had a lovely courtyard dining area.  The food was superb, as were the wines......certainly not cheap though!  We decided to re-visit the main square for a coffee and a digestif and found it buzzing with life - a lovely anniversary lunch.
Another lazy afternoon, then Henk joined us for aperitifs at 6.30p.m.......a very nice Cremant d’Alsace.  Cremant is produced both in Bourgogne and Alsace - personal taste but Crew slightly prefers the Alsace version.
We had a discussion about our Rhine cruise, which is new territory to us, and decided that Henk would be leading us, as he has done this part of the Rhine before......a comfort to us!
Just a bit of TV then bed.

Friday 7th June - Mulhouse

Nice lie in for Crew......hurrah!!  Today is our lovely granddaughters’ 4th birthday - happy birthday Rose.....have a lovely day!
We went with Henk to a lovely little fish restaurant, La Marmite, close to the port......Henk in his element as he loves fish.  The Maitre d’ was very charming, food good quality and at a moderate price.
A lazy evening watching a DVD as the weather had become windy and rainy, so reception not so good.

Thursday 6th June - Heidwiller to Mulhouse

What a difference a day makes - we woke to much cooler weather and rain, so sweaters, coats and hats were in order!    Crew was not looking forward to ten locks in the rain, although at least the rain stopped after three locks.  Last time we cruised to Mulhouse, it was similar weather......must be something about Mulhouse!
The number of locks today was increased by one, as an ecluse de garde was not open as usual - a pain!  All went well until, when in our eighth lock, the lock keeper said we should wait in the next lock whilst he went for lunch - a bit early we thought but in the event, he returned to us at 12.45 p.m. Just three more locks saw us arrived at the port.  We were greeted by the Capitaine and a lady who helped us moor on the visitors pontoon, alongside.  A steady drizzle had started again so we got the canopy and sides up as quickly as possible. A fairly quick bite of lunch followed by usual siesta.
There was an important football match in the evening between Holland and the UK, but kick off was not until 8.45 p.m.  Of course we couldn’t get any TV coverage but Henk found it on French TV - he has a different system to us!  So after we had something to eat, Skip went over to Cornelis k. To watch whilst Crew watched a very good episode of Vera, going over to Henks’ boat afterwards to watch the sad end for England.....3 - 1!!!!

11 locks  2 lifting bridges 13 km 4 hours

Wednesday 5th June - Dannemarie to Heidwiller

The plan had been to go directly to Mulhouse from here but as it was a long trip with 22 locks to navigate, so we decided to break the journey and moor on what Crew calls a ‘country mooring’ with no facilities.  We planned on an evening barbecue as there are no facilities to be had.  To this end we had bought some prawns in the supermarket yesterday.
We had arranged with the lock keeper to be at the first lock at 9.30 - everything going smoothly until we caught up with a very slow going ex- restaurant barge.  The entire local fleet of the VNF were accompanying us this morning......four vans, a motorbike and around 6 men!
We caught up with the slow moving barge just three locks from our mooring spot and had the frustration of having to wait almost half an hour for him to lock through and for the lock to refill.  Even though we cruised very slowly, we still caught him up for the next lock and of course by now, it was lunchtime!  So frustrating!!  However the nice lock keeper said he would see us through our last lock and have a late lunch, so we arrived at the mooring around 1.30 p.m.
We got settled as soon as possible as it was easily 30c by then and not much breeze so we were all sweltering!  Cold beers and lunch followed.
After a siesta and cold showers, Henk came over with the prawns and we set about marinating them in garlic, herbs and oil.  Served with couscous, remoulade and salad, they went down very well.  A little while after dinner, the wind got up and we retired below.

10 km 12 locks 4 hours

Tuesday 4th June - Dannemarie

We had decided to stay for two nights as Dannemarie is a pleasant town.  Crew put a load of washing on as it was already warm and there would be no drying problem.  The three of us had already decided to walk into town for lunch - there is a little controversy about the distance but Crew maintains that it’s around a kilometre and slightly uphill going!  We went just after midday - by now the temperature was about 30c already and not much shade to be had.  We checked that the Auberge de St.Leonard was not open.....they are still on holiday.  So we went across the road to a Chinese restaurant - a bit odd in France but we were met by a lovely cheery Chinese lady who not only kept us well amused but served us an above average lunch, with good wine.  Skip and Crew got the giggles when she said ‘flied lice’.....such an old cliche!
A little detour on our return to the port - Henk bought some good shoes in a shop here two years ago.  Crew felt that we ought to keep him company.......ooh, lovely shoe shop!!   Two pairs of shoes later (one pair of winter shoes for Henk and a lovely pair of red sandals for Crew) - Skip decided against. We then made our way to the supermarket for a few necessities.  The walk back was very hot and we were glad to get back on board.
Usual siesta and lazy evening.

Monday 3rd June - Montreux-Chateau to Dannemarie

As we had reached the summit, today we start going down in the locks - much easier.  We had arranged with the lock keeper to start the downstream chain of 14 locks at 9.30 a.m.  to this end we left the mooring at 9 for the 5 km run to the first lock.  We noticed a boat start off in our direction a little before we left - a bit of a puzzle as we thought there was a boat locking through at 10 a.m.  Unfortunately we caught him up travelling very slowly which held us up, making us late for our rendezvous!  As it happens we were only five minutes late.

Everything went swimmingly (and very fast) until our 8th lock.  The water went down as usual but as the bottom gates hadn’t closed properly, the top gates wouldn’t open, so the lock keeper raised the water level again and back up we went.  The operation was successful this time, so off we went again.

A very pleasant cruise in lovely sunshine again but today with more wind than before.  

We arrived in the port of Dannemarie around noon but it was  nearer 12.30 by the time we and Henk were safely moored, thanks to the wind deciding to increase just as we arrived.  In fact it was gusting quite hard now making mooring difficult.

We finally got settled, enjoyed a few well deserved beers and lunched on Parma ham and melon....just right for such a hot day.  After a siesta, Skip went into town for a few bits and, if possible to book a table at the Auberge St. Leonard for tomorrow lunchtime.  Sadly it was the restaurants’ annual holiday time and they didn’t re-open until later in the month. A shame because we remember eating there two years ago and it was very good.  Ah well......plan B as usual!!
We weren’t feeling very hungry at all so just picked on peanuts and cheese whilst watching a bit of TV.

Sunday 2nd June - Montbeliard to Montreaux-Chateau

We left the port at 9.30 as arranged and met up again with our friendly VNF man at the first lock.  Crew applauded him for his English and he said that he had only learned it at school and that it was a long time ago........the same for both of us!

We had a little trouble getting our zapper to work until we were almost on the lock gates with a couple of locks - we suspect that the trees and foliage were blocking the signal. 

Todays’ cruise is a little complicated, with changes of canals and a chain of five manned locks at the end.  Henk had started an hour behind us as usual but when we arrived at our 6th lock, the VNF man was there.  We had to relinquish our zapper as the last five locks were manual and then we were told that we must wait for another boat to join us........it would be Henk!  So Crew having risen relatively early, could have had another hour in bed!!!  Zut alors!

When the locks are manned, they close between 12.30 and 1.30 for lunch of course, so we had to tie off in the seventh lock and wait until 1.30 p.m., making it a longer day than we would have wished.  The plus point was that the weather was beautiful.....it could have been raining!

Our lock keeper arrived just before 1.30 in the event and it took us less than two hours to get to Montreaux.  The temperature had been steadily rising during the morning and by the time we were settled we were sweltering in around 30c......Crew now has flip-flop marks on her feet!!

Arriving at 3.15 meant a very late lunch since we needed some recuperative beers on landing!
Siestas were definitely in order today.....the heat has debilitated us all.
We dined fairly late on deck and scooted off to bed reasonably early.

22 km 11 locks 6 hours

Saturday 1st June - Montbeliard

Although Skip was much improved this morning, he wasn’t yet 100%, so as we had two fairly hard days ahead of us, we decided not to leave until tomorrow.  With this in mind he went to inform the nice VNF man of our change of plans......he said it’s very important to have a fit Skipper.
The weather has warmed up considerably, as forecast, and a gentle breeze cooled us.  Our new thermometer was reading 33c but realistically it was around 25c - such a shame our family missed it!
We lunched on board with Henk - Skip had bought some large prawns with the idea of having them for lunch but Henk had some too, so he made a very good Marie Rose sauce and we had them with smoked salmon, salad and bread.
In order for Skip to get back to full health so a quiet afternoon and evening followed - work tomorrow!

Friday 31st May - Montbeliard

Luxury..... a lovely lie in for Crew!!  The idea for today is relaxation, for tomorrow we are on the move again.  Skip went over to the Capitainerie to see if our charger had arrived - it hadn’t of course. So he went about checking the tracking of the parcel......it appears that they couldn’t find the address - it should be simple but eventually the package was lost in the ether!   Steam coming out of Crews’ ears!!!!  The irony is that last year we bought a mini Hoover as the Dyson charger stopped working and instead of storing it in the engine room as a spare, we took it home.....mistake!  Enough about vacuum cleaners!
There is a small bistro/bar at the end of our pontoon, so we decided to give it a go for lunch with Henk.  It was very restricted, serving just a ‘plat’ for €10 - either a pork stew with prunes or a choice of two salads, one with smoked trout and the other with sausage.  Henk and Crew chose the pork and Skip had the smoked trout salad........all perfectly good. The carafe of white wine was very good.
Crew had put the washing machine on before lunch as, strangely, the electricity supply had improved
so put the washing out on our return. Then relax!!
Skip went over to see the VNF to inform them of our departure times tomorrow (we have one manual lock and they need to know when a lock keeper is needed).  He said that we would leave at 9.30 and Henk at 10.30.
Early evening, Skip complained of aches and pains and was running a slight temperature.  As the evening wore on, his temperature rose alarmingly so Crew had to become ‘nurse’ and administer copious amounts of water and a cold compress.  He gets this every now and again oddly, mostly only on the boat and he does have some medication which helps.......alas, he forgot to bring the pills!
So a quiet evening, watching two episodes of Doc Martin and bed.