April 30th to May 2nd

Saint Mihiel-Verdun-Dun sur Meuse

Sunday 30th

We have arrived in Verdun.  Lots of weed again but the lockie tells us it is better from here on.   When we are on the river sections there is a lot of current in our favour and no weed and after today the river sections get longer and longer and the canal sections are much shorter, just where the locks are.  Nice weather now, definitely more like spring.  Public holiday tomorrow and locks are closed so we will spend 2 nights here.  Last time we were here I walked all over the old town, amazing.  

Very thick weed

Entering Verdun, a tunnel under the old city walls

May 1st, a day in Verdun

Porte Chaussee date from 1380, one of the original gates into the old city

The portcullis is still there

Our boat, second from the right, tied up in front of the Quay de Londres, with the cathedral in the background

For me the best bit was the crypt.  It dates from at least 1135 but was destroyed in the 18th century.  After the WW1 when work began on the reconstruction of the cathedral the crypt was discovered and  eventually restored.

Part of the earliest 12th century construction with a magnificent organ

The narrow steep streets connecting the cathedral to the simple people of the port area are a delight

May 2nd, Verdun to Dun-sur-Meuse

Having booked the lock for 9.30 (we are in a section of locks that are not automated and require the assistance of lock keepers), we set of bright and early, a little misty but with the promise of a fine day ahead.  We arrived in good time, but no lockies.  15 minutes later 2 arrived, in no particular hurry, and said there is another boat coming.  At 10.00 it finally arrived.  We shared the next 9 locks together, but at least they knew what they were doing and move in and out of locks like a hot knife through butter.  We have stopped in the same place this afternoon an discovered that they too are heading for the Roermond area in Holland to put their boat up for sale.  We still had sections with really bad weed problems, hopefully that will improve tomorrow.

This lock has sloping sides and floating pontoon which slides up and down on rails