Bouchain to Cambrai

That little coot I mentioned last night?  He was not popular this morning.  He slept on our swim platform last night (evidence: lots of bird poo!), woke up at the crack of dawn and started pecking at things on the hull.  It was like living inside a woodpecker’s hole.  By 7 we had had enough and got up; kind of normal time for me but rather early for Ian.

And there he/she was, just beginning to build a nest.

Look at those funny feet: blue and not webbed but with frilly flaps of skin.

At about 8.00 there was a loud hooting outside – an itinerant “boulangerie” (baker’s shop), so I had to buy a baguette (even though we didn’t really need bread!).

We set off at 9.15 , feeling very guilty about the coot.  The first lock, Iwuy (no idea how to pronounce it, so glad I didn’t have to call), was just 2 km away.  As we approached the lights changed from red to red/green.  Aha – we had been seen.

These are all paired locks with one for upstream traffic and the other for downstream traffic.  There was a lock-keeper at this one, even though it is automated, and he motioned for us to come to the middle of the lock and put a rope around a vertical steel pole set into the side of the lock which would slide up/down as the water in the lock rises or falls - just one purchase amidships. The rope gets rather messy!

He explained that there is a lot of turbulence near the front and rear of the lock. And he was right.  

When we got to the top he gave us a “telecommande” (remote control) and asked if we had been through the Canal St Quentin before.  As we had not, he very clearly explained (in French) exactly how to use the automated lock system with the telecommande:

Approach the lock “doucement” (slowly) and the sensors should pick you up and change the lights from red to red/green.  If that does not happen, press the dark blue button (montant, seeing we are going upstream).  The lights will change, the gates will open, and we must enter and tie up.  When we are ready, press the light blue button (bassinet) and this will activate the rest of the cycle: gates close, lock fills, gates open, we exit.  That’s it!

So off we went.  Actually, we never got any of the lock sensors to recognise us, we always had to press the dark blue button but that activated the system immediately.  No problems.  At the next 2 locks, Thun l’Eveque and Erre, there was also a pole to put a rope around. But the 2 locks after that, Selles and Cantimpre, used the normal fore and aft bollard system.

The Escaut canal is lovely, quite narrow and winding, and we met a commercial barge right at a bend.

A selection from the dozens of photos we took today.

Pleasing scenery

Terrible photo but couldn't resist it - our first ducklings of the season.

Second lock Thun l’Eveque

Turbulance

Sian holding the rope around the pole

Soggy fields, this cow was  up to her knees in mud!

Lovely riverside property

Third lock, Erre

Statues? Ducks, a cat, an oversize frog and an almost life-size cow!

Fourth lock - Selles, with water cascading over the gates

You can almost see Cantimpre Lock as you exit Selles

Our destination

You can see the Port de Cantimpre from the lock

And here we are

We expected the short 12 km trip with 5 locks to take up to 5 hours but less than 4 hours later we were tied up in the Port de Cantimpre.  A couple of hours later I heard a call from an English voice.  A lovely lady introduced herself as Carol and gave us a lot of really useful information. First and foremost the Capitainerie (harbour authority) is closed so we don’t have to pay. Second, there is water on Fridays and Tuesdays – today is Friday, if you need water fill up this afternoon.  Third, directions to the closest supermarkets.  Wasn’t that nice of her.  She and her husband John overwinter here on a big barge with two dogs, one of which gave me a bit of exercise with a ball later this evening. We have even hooked up to electricity for free.  I think we might just spend another day here.  It is a very historic city with church and cathedral that definitely need a look (I read that there is a Rubens in the church)and tomorrow is market day.