30.08.11.

Well, Im sure that you must have wondered if we have sunk with no survivors but Im happy to report that the lack of blog is not down to our demise!!!!  We realised that we were in the canal de centre with only 15 days until my daughter visited, and that we had arranged to meet her in Auxerre!! So we commenced a mission of travelling 8 hours a day and not staying over anywhere so we could make our rendevous.We travelled the canal de centre to Digoin, the canal lateral et Loire to Decize and then the Canal de Nivernais back to Auxerre. I have to say it felt like we had come home when we arrived back on to the River frontage, although we are not paying for our stay here (at 17.90 euros per night!!!) so we are on the 'free' side but without water or electricity.... John has worked out a devious way to get water from the water fountain which involves ropes and a dead fender to keep the button pressed down!! We took photos and I was going to update the blog when we got some pick up on the dongle, but sadly the computer died with all the photos on it and so this is being written on my gas powered laptop....... We made it here in time and have had a lovely time over the last long weekend with them all here!! The girls loved the life and Darcey (4yrs) and Yvie (2yrs) settled into life afloat very well!

 Darcey driving the boat better than John!!!

 Darcey (left) and Yvie (right) sporting their snazzy life jackets!!

 The girls loved Patrice and wrapped him up in one of their 'blankie's'

 Ross wearing Yvie's sunglasses, Dominy and Yvie enjoying the sun...

and finally Patrice with his new friend 'horsey', he takes him everywhere with him.....

We are still in Auxerre and going to move on sometime this week, but we are at least back in contact with the world and the internet as long as the laptop keeps going!!!!

Sunday 07.08.11

Well we are now at a little place called Ciry le noble which is 3 hours away from Montceau les Mines. We spent 2 nights there, but the moorings were not good, one night we were 3 rafted away from the shore, the 2nd night 2 barges away, it didnt stop raining and our neighbours definitely not good!! The market however is even better than Chagny, it happens on saturday mornings and is HUGE. The food part was excellent too and we stocked up on really cheap fruit and vegetables. Getting out of the Port de Plaissance was not quick or easy, best to show you in pictures.....

 The first of the bridges blocking our way... took ages for them to realise we were there....

 Eventually it shot up in the air and we were through the first,

 Next a swing bridge.....

 Gosh so high, made us feel very important although it took them 10 minutes to notice us, probably eating again.....

 the 3rd lift bridge at last we were on open waterways again!!!

 Crazy caravan on a boat base........

Two really cute pictures of Patrice, sorry folks....That's all for now!!

04.08.11

We finally left Chagny on 2nd August, having made some lovely friends there, Sue and George and Ernest and Rosemary who have a fantastic barge called Imponderabilia and we had some lovely social times. The market was all we expected of it (and more ) at Chagny so if you are in the region it is well worth going. I got a new watch for 5 euros as mine packed up Sunday morning....(Timing was perfect!!)

 Ernest alongside his boat

 Rosemary and 'Luxe Mo'

 Scotsmen looking for halfpennies? No some weird sculptures someone had in their garden!!!

The view behind us when we moored at St Leger sur Dheune

There is a festival on 6th August at St Julien and all we can presume is that this is a float for it. They had a bath tub behind it and a princess carriage in front of it, being pulled by some skeletal plastic swans......

The most tremendous horns on these cattle sadly they havent come out all that well......

Our moorings just before Ecluse 1 on the other side of the canal de centre towards Decize



30.07.11

We left fragnes yesterday and made our way to Chagny, we will stay until Monday as they apparently have a fantastic Sunday market which we want to go to. The weather has at last stopped raining although it is still cloudy at times, it is still really hot when the sun breaks through!!

 On our travels yesterday, we saw a huge woodyard who appeared to be keeping the tree trunks wet with sprayed water..not sure why?

 Some of the locks were very deep but only half of the big one at the entrance to this canal.

 The bollards float up with you so its not as bad as having to get the rope over the bollard at the top.

 Entrance to the beginning of Chagny, we were pleased to see this having done 11 locks in 3 hours!!! All electric and self operated, it is quite difficult to pull the rope to start them off too.....

 Our moorings at Chagny.

 Patrice is getting used to going out on his harness, at least he's stopped fighting it but doesnt walk very well on it yet, and just falls over on to his side!!

He loved this bench and seat, a ready made climbimg frame for cats!!!!!

28.07.11

We left St Jean de Losne on wednesday, and we werent sorry to leave... we really didnt like it much the best thing to come from our visit is Patrice!! The chandleries were not stocked well (couldnt get things we needed) and very very expensive!!!

We left at 10.40 am and after 10 hours of cruising we were unable to find anywhere to moor the boat. We ended up by tieing ourselves to a tree for the night but it was a bit scarey.... We met our first large commercial boats on our trip on the Saone and they made us feel very small indeed!!

The next day we left our shakey moorings and made for the canal de Centre where we encountered our biggest lock yet... I have to say my hands were shaking when I did the ropes the sheer size was so overwhelming!!

 The rather domineering entrance to the Canal de Centre, it felt like we were going to our doom!!!!

 And didn't feel much better inside the lock, it was so very very deep!!!

The sky seemed miles away!!

 Our fist view ever of a baby white heron!! It was so young it didnt fly away when we approached!

 Our moorings in Fragnes, unlimited electricity and water!!! Ive done all the stuff that is energy consuming including all the washing in the washing bin!!!

 Patrice investigating the front garden of the boat, he likes hiding in my bicycle basket!!

We took Patrice for a walk on his harness today but he didnt like it and kept trying to get back onto the boat!! Tomorrow we are going to move off as it is quite expensive to stay here but it has been good to enjoy amenities for once!!

Puddlestonia announces arrival of 'PATRICE'

At last after looking for as long as we have been in France we now have our kitten, a 3month old tabby called Patrice. We have been looking and asking everyone and today a lady approached us as we left the barge to say that we should go to the vets around the corner... we were on our way to look at some very tiny kittens but we changed course and went to the vet... There we were given Patrice plus food and worming pills and we have had a lovely day playing with him and getting him used to us. We thought long and hard about names but this was by mutual agreement. He's great and we are as pleased as punch.... At least St Jean de Losne got something right for us, we are not terribly enamoured by the town, particularly as we arrived in the middle of the canoeing championships and they closed the river!!!

19.07.11

Well we are back from our distressing time in the UK. We have also got over having my oldest out here for a week and now we are moving on tomorrow from Dijon.  We spent a nice time doing touristy things but I cant wait to get on with travelling again, we are also in search of winter moorings although we have provisionally booked Auxerre again.
We climbed a mountain last week to visit the 'Notre Dame de l'Etang statue'  and when we finally got to the top it was to see a load of paragliders waiting to take off! We watched a couple go, something I wouldnt like to do I'm sure!!

The statue was a marvel in victorian engineering but is now fenced off as it needs repairs, but can be seen for miles around, France's equivalent of Rio I suppose!!

The swans have grown alot since we first saw them but appear to be as grumpy as their father and fight alot!!

John has just told me that the repairs are not going well, so he is not sure if we will move tomorrow, and whilst I've been on the computer and John was down in the engine room either someone has stolen one bedroom curtain or else the wind has removed it without trace..... (where can I get velvet curtains in France that don't cost the earth? wish Leominster was round the corner.......)