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| 20 kms, 4 locks |
This morning
it was -1.2o outside at 7.30 (yes, that is a minus) and 3.8o
inside. Not so warm! As I stumbled out
of bed the first thing I did was switch on the diesel heater. Aaah, what a pleasure!
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| He's been here since before sunrise. And you think we are crazy? |
We watched
qualifying for the Formula 1 grand prix in China, then I toddled off to the
bakery for some sustenance to keep us going through the day. I bought a croissant aux amandes, an escargot
de raisins and a baguette “tradition” which looked a bit small, so I bought
another baguette petite de lardons, which is a totally decadent skinny baguette
with bacon and cheese rolled into the dough before cooking. Yummmm!
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| Just a few more calories |
We left at
9.45 by which time the temperature had risen to 5o, the sky was
blue, the sun was shining, but the wind was a bit nippy.
At the first
lock we used our wonderful “telecommand” to announce our arrival, the lights
started activating then went out – completely – nothing. But the lock gates opened and we cruised on
in. The window of the lock keeper’s post
opened and a very voluble lockie leaned out and said a whole lot, the only bit
of which I understood was “en panne” i.e. out of order. What? Then he rushed down the stairs and
asked if the “monsieur” could help him wind the lock gates. Oh, the automatic system was out of order and
had to be operated by hand. Well, he
did all the winding, he just needed Ian to tell him when the sluice thing at the
bottom of the lock gate was fully closed.
Meanwhile another cruising boat hove into view.
Lock number
2, no problem, went like clockwork. Lock
number 3: lights shone to show our command had been received, then they all
went out, nothing. And we saw a lockie
run out of a house and into the lock keeper’s post. Apparently it was also “en panne” but he
could operate it all from his command post.
Close by the
river is the place in the forests of Compiegne where the armistice between
France, England and Germany was signed on November 11th, 1918. Apparently the railway carriage in which the
treaty was signed is in the village Rethondes, but is only open to visitors in
the summer. Pity, I would love to see that.
Meanwhile we
had been cruising past lovely, expensive looking properties with extensive
lawns reaching down to the river. I
think I wouldn’t mind living in a house like that.
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| A boat house? A wash house? |
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| Extensive lawns |
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| Exensive dock |
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| Fancy boat but where's the house |
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| More traditional, but still got the lawn |
Once again
our fenders picked up a lot of mud from the lock walls and transferred it to
the hull. Yesterday I spent a good while
with unbelievably cold water bucketed out of the river to clean the fenders and
hull (yes, my halo is shining brightly) and was so annoyed that it all got messed up
again within 5 minutes!
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| The Aisne River, and Big Black Bertha on the foredeck |
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| Ian's socks. Thank you Jaqui! |
At 13.00 we
arrived a Vic-sur-Aisne.
Ian cleaned the
hull (giving me a break) then got stuck into his battery problem, having received
a reply from the supplier telling him what to do. I made myself scarce and took
the camera with me!
Vic is a
charming little town. Old old old! The Romans
spent some time here and there is a Keep (what they call a “donjon” in French),
the central stronghold of the medieval castles, dating from the 12th
century. Alongside that a magnificent
chateau was built in the 18th century. Unfortunately it is closed until the summer.
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| The magnificent chateau and "donjon" |
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| The "donjon" with Mairie in the background |
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| The Halte Nautique from the bridge, with free electricity and supposedly water but it was disconnected. |
I got back
to a very happy Ian, his battery installation has been successful and now we
are running on LiFePo4 batteries. If you open up the battery box it looks like
a disco – lots of flashing lights. And
it all gets operated via Bluetooth on a tablet.
I am used to using a hydrometer to test the state of the batteries, this
electronic wizardry is way beyond me.
Just after I got back we were treated to a display by the Fire Brigade testing out their pumps and hoses. Pretty impressive!
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| It reaches all the way across the canal |
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| Two pumps in action |
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