Canal du Nivernais: Baye to Clamcey

19 to 25 August 2017 - 48 kilometers, 44 locks, 3 tunnels, 4 lifting bridges.

Saturday 19 August 2017: Baye to PK74 – 8.5 kilometers, 3 tunnels, 16 locks, 8 hours.

Keeping a sharp eye out for any boating movement headed toward the one-way cutting and the three tunnels so that we could lead any potential convoy thus avoiding an unnecessary intake of CO in the tunnels and be in the front of the lock which is much more comfortable on a decent, we untied and manoeuvred out of the fairly tight mooring only to see a hireboat sliding across the marina entrance – and they were being followed by narrowboat Lazy Notes and a Le Boat hirer. So we cruised and tunnelled through this stunning stretch of waterway last and at the waiting pontoon at the first descending lock there were two boats waiting to lock through – they had spent the night there and we were all pretty annoyed that they had waited until ten o’clock to start their journey thus delaying the rest of us. A long story short, we eventually started the descent at 13h20.

Colancelle Tunnel - 758 meters.

Mouas Tunnel - 268 meters

Breulles Tunnel - 212 meters

Doesn't get better than this.

Being passed on to consecutive teams of lockkeepers, each manning a set of two locks, we made good time (especially as the French hireboat skipper really knew what he was doing)

Lynn the Lockie

Helping out at the lock at the restaurant lock between locks 6 and 7.

Her lockie partner. Hmmmm.

The restaurant.

Our two lady lockeepers and the hireboat couple.

eventually tying up at a bollarded cutting a couple of hundred meters below the Sardy lock where there is a baguette dispenser and a small shop run by the Dutch lady lockkeeper. Also moored there was what I had thought at the start of the day was a hireboat but which turned out to be an ex-hireboat Crazydays owned by delightful British couple Ray and Di and their lovely doggie Jax (Jack Russell cross – geddit?). They had invited narrowboat Lazy Notes’ owners Bob and Penni for sundowners and invited us to join the party which we did although only for an hour as we were both dead tired. Turns out that Bob was a marine engineer (amongst other fascinating things) and does repair work for boaters at a very reasonable rate – I would be speaking to him about our diesel leak at our next stop!

Sunday 20 August 2017: PK74 to Chitry-les-Mines – 8 kilometers, 12 locks, 3 hours, 30 minutes (student lockkeepers kept working during their lunch hour).

Bob and Penni had to fetch their car from somewhere and take it to Chitry-les-Mines leaving us the pleasurable favour of travelling with Ray and Di

Sculpture along the canalside.

Locking through with Crazydays

Two more locks to go!

and in no time at all we were in Chitry followed a couple of hours later by the very tired occupants of Lazy Notes – they had cycled eighteen kilometres on small wheeled bikes and then done the twelve locks to Chitry. Ray and Di continued to their ‘home’ port at Marigny-sur-yonne where they were leaving their boat to go back to the UK for a wedding.

The Chitry port is great with lots of side on mooring and a small quayside restaurant selling very reasonably priced food off a fairly limited menu.

And apart from Diesel Marine, a chandlery run by the Johnson family (who also run the port) there aint much there. But a three kilometre ride, mostly along a cycle path, into the bustling little town of Corbigny will bring you to a supermarket and most other shops and services you could wish for.

Our view forward.

Could this be Avalon Abroad?

The Port.

Part of the cycle path to Corbigny

The next day after having re-provisioned in Corbigny (where we bumped into Ray and Di driving their motorhome and who joined us for a drink back at the port) and having procured a new house water pump, some paint (International Top Lac Ivoire 812 will now be our new topsides colour), oil filters and two heat exchanger rubber joints, we changed the pump (still not working 100% and guru Ian says the bladder needs reinflating – but I can’t get to the valve) and at least have a decent flow of water again! That evening we had Bob and Penni and John and Stephanie Johnson aboard for sundowners.

Penni, Stephanie, Moi, Bob and John.

A present from Stephanie!

Monday 22 August 2017: Chitry-les-Mines to Monceaux-le-Comte – 8.5 kilometers, 6 locks, 3 lifting bridges, 2 hours 50 minutes.

Bright and early we said our farewells and on a stunning morning arrived at the first lifting bridge where Lynn jumped off, held the button while the bridge lifted (if you don’t hold it in the mechanism stops) and, after I had passed through, held the other button to drop the bridge and then jumped on board again.

Just before lunchtime the young girl lockie asked if we were stopping at Monceaux-le-Comte for lunch – “There is free mooring with water and electricity and a restaurant an epicerie”. Cool! “Thank you, we will stay the night”. Everybody happy.

There is free mooring but quite shallow as we couldn’t quite get our stern against the bank – and definitely no electricity or water.

Happy mooring.

With the adjacent wood factory - sprinklers 24/7
so just don't let the wind be blowing toward your boat!

The French way.

And the restaurant was actually part of the epicerie which advertised (all over the place) that they were open for breakfast and lunch seven days a week.

So next morning at just before eight we wandered into the village for brekker arriving at the epicerie with its sign proclaiming that it was open seven days a week from 07h30 until 21h00 – firmly locked and not a sign of a soul. August holiday.

Foraging for blackberries.

Bridge over the Yonne

But a quaint little town anyway.

Suppertime in Monceaux.

Tuesday 23 August 2017: Monceaux-le-Comte to Tannay Gare – 5.5 kilometers, 2 lifting bridges, 1 hour 55 minutes.

Another uneventful, short cruise brought us to the Le Boat base where we lifted the bikes off and set off up the three kilometre hill to the town of Tannay – the part of town where the base is had nothing to offer and even the auberge was closed. For some reason we took no cameras to town and even the port was not scenic enough to take a picture of. Diesel was on sale at €1.60 per litre – quite a premium on filling station prices and some 30% more expensive than that sold at the big supermarkets.

Later in the day Lazy Notes pulled in behind us and Bob said he would pop over the next morning and have a look at the diesel leak issue.

Wednesday 24 August 2017: Tannay Gare to Chevroches – 14.5 kilometers, 7 locks, 1 lifting bridge, 4 hours 20 minutes (including 20 minute lunch stop).

Nine o’clock sharp Bob was aboard and folded himself behind the port engine where, after performing some tidy convolutions, pronounced that the leak was coming from a ‘very difficult to get to’ nut on a pipe going to the diesel pump. Nothing serious and he would take a proper look the next day. Relief!

Much rather you than me Sir!

We had been advised to get to Clamecy port early as it is a popular stopping point for the Le Boat hirers handing their boats back at Tannay as well as for the Locaboat hirers heading for Les Granges – and not to mention contract barges, hotel barges, bike and kayak holiday boats, and private cruisers and barges, so we decided to stop three kilometres short at the free mooring and services stop at Chevroches where a hotel barge and a lovely charter barge Randle were taking up most of the quay but we managed to find a spot - unfortunately the water and electricity had been disconnected.

A pedestrian swing bridge.

Sad rotter.

Chevroches quay is just after the bridge.

Lynn had been monitoring her ailing mother’s health and it had taken a sharp turn for the worse after we left. After a couple of calls to the doctor and to the carers at the home where she was staying, Lynn decided that she needed to get back to South Africa and, after much tribulation, finally managed to get on an Emirates flight to Durban departing on the Saturday.

Dealing with Emirates helpdesk - exasperating!

All this meant that we didn’t get around to exploring Chevroches and only as we were departing did we see the beautiful big church up against the hill.

Thursday 25 to Saturday 2 September 2017: Chevroches to Clamecy – 3 kilometers, 2 locks, 1 hour.

The short cruise to Clamecy was gorgeous although it was sad to see that the new port has never been completed and is all boarded up.

The first lock in a cloudburst.

The boarded up 'new port'1,500 meters from Clamecy.

The port above the lock at Clamecy was almost deserted and we secured a spot near a water and electricity outlet behind a South African owned boat Baars which we had seen last year in Einville

Right hand side - Baars in front, Elle astern.

and some while later Lazy Notes arrived after having collected their car from Chitry-les-Mines and dropping it at Clamecy before returning to Tannay to collect their boat.

On a recommendation from Darrell we decided to treat ourselves to the three course lunchtime ‘plat’ at the Hostellerie da la Poste a short walk away from the port and what a fine meal it was too – one of our best in France!

Soupcon of tuna.

Soft poached egg with everything.

Delicious hake.

Clamecy is a lovely town with its ancient medieval centre on top of the hill and the newer but still old part just off the port. Across the bridge it is mostly residential but with a sprinkling of boulangerie, hotel, tabac and one or two others. Unfortunately the huge Orthodox Church was locked.

The view off our bow.

Looking upstream to the lock above which we are moored.

The Orthodox Church.

Memorial to the bargees.

Friday was spent in a blur with Lynn getting organised for her trip to Durban but we did do a big shop at the eLeclerc which is three kilometres from the mooring. Bob arrived at midday and after four hours of crawling around the dark parts of Elle we think that the diesel leak might be fixed. A tricky glowplug was changed, impellers changed and the pulsing water pump was issue solved. They are wintering in Vermenton where we have booked a space so I will get a couple more tricky issues fixed there. I highly recommend Bob’s services and he can be contacted on +44 77 54 31 51 37 and he does travel.

Saturday morning Lynn finished packing her backpack and we wandered up to the old city, had coffee and then headed for the station where Lynn would take a bus (train drivers strike) to Migennes and then on to Paris. A quick goodbye and I dashed back to Elle where a miserable week was spent waiting for Lynn to come home. Lynn’s week was horrible! Her Mom, Miriam (or Mike to those who knew her from the Cape Town days), passed away on 29 August and the only redeeming aspect was that Lynn was there to be with her.

In happier times with brother Archie - RIP Mike.

After a week of boat watching and a bit of socializing I am sitting here waiting for Lynn to confirm her train details back to Clamecy.

Drinks with Bob and Penni aboard Lazy Notes.

Executing a U-turn. Pretty well done.

Brunel but not the one from Einville last year.

I thought that this was a refugee boat when it first apeared rising in the lock.

After the towels out came the smalls.

A hotel boat arrived and after moving a hireboat off their mooring asked/ordered Lazy Notes to move so that he could turn around. His deckhand was useless and I didn’t think much of his skills either.