"Elle" - Exploring the European Inland Waterways: Yonne River to the Burgundy Canal (Canal du Bourgogne): Joigny

14 May to 17 May 2019. 37 kilometers, 8 locks.

Tuesday 14 May. Villeneuve-sur-Yonne to Joigny. 20 kilometers, 3 locks, 3 hours, 45 minutes.

Waking to our warmest morning of the season so far (10C) everyone was up and about for our planned eight o’clock departure in order to catch the first lock at the usual opening time of nine. After the strongly gusting winds of yesterday and the day before, to see calm waters was a pleasure but conditions did not keep and by the time we exited the lock (new operating times: 09h15 to 12h00, 13h00 to 18h45) the gusts were quite strong, fortunately onto our stern allowing our dodger to give us some spinnaker assist. The downside was that Lynn’s most favourite, warmest fleecy was blown, unnoticed, off the deck.

The Yonne is flowing well.

An imported beach.

A short delay at the next lock while we waited for a Le Boat to enter and exit and then,

Easy does it...

...and away you go.

with the same lockie in tow, we headed for our final sloping lock on the Yonne, a big one at 3,1 meters lift but with two good floating pontoons. Waiting at the top of the lock were another two hire-boats who might possibly have had to wait an age while the lockie escorted the earlier Le Boat down two locks and then ourselves back in the opposite direction.

Our last sloping lock with the two hire-boats waiting.

Having earlier received a message from Oldtimer that the non-marina moorings were completely free, we were eagerly anticipating finding space at our preferred place near the lane leading to the supermarkets - and we were not disappointed!

Approaching Joigny.

The view from our saloon.

Bikes off and off to the Bricolage (closed between 12h15 and 14h15!) for a five-micron water filter and then to the Intermarche for supplies before returning to Elle for a mid-afternoon luncheon and a-whiling away of the day.

Madame varnishing the reinforced gas-hatch cover.

We later heard that the lock ‘Vinneuf’ had caught on fire and all its electrics were burned out. It is now closed until further notice and, being the lock which tossed us around so rudely, it was just deserts (condolences to other boaters but think of the trouble this incidence has postponed for you). Promises, we did NOT go back to the lock and set a mischief...

The following day was chore day: Ian unloaded his little trailer and did a total of seven runs to the nearby petrol station returning each time with forty litres of diesel and then another to ferry an extra propane cylinder for us - our last Belgian Antargas one could not be exchanged and now needs to be dumped.

And now we are one hundred and twenty kilograms plus a big gas cylinder heavier. After a quick visit to the weekly market (not nearly as well supported by vendors as the one on Saturdays), finding a replacement jacket for Lynn and finding that the Bricolage had sold out of five-micron filters, an enjoyable ‘farewell to the Carters’ lunch was had with them (we part ways on the morrow, they going down the Nivernais, while we branch off on the Burgundy Canal) at the nearby Le Canotiers restaurant.

Our main course, beef kidneys. The Carters had steak.

When we first met up, Ian had offered to fix two issues which had plagued us – the non-starting Port Engine (only an issue this year) [Check!] and a diesel leak at the (dark-side-of-the-engine) lift pump which had bugged us for most of last year and this. So come late afternoon Mr Fix-It arrives and some two hours later we no longer have a leak. Someone, somewhere had tightened the banjo joint in such a way as to force the crimped diesel hose leading to the filter tightly against the exhaust pipe which in turn caused it to crack and spray out fuel when the engine was running. Ian managed to cut off the crimped end, reposition the banjo joint and clamp the hose back on with two steel clamps. [Check!].

A weary Master Mechanic...

...and his lackey

Thursday 16 May. Joigny to Brienon. 17 kilometers, 5 locks, 4 hours, 30 minutes.

Awaking to a crystal clear, 4C morning it took some some time to wriggle from their cocoons and take the short ride to Lidl so that Ian could buy another ‘Dremel’ tool like the one which he had had stolen from their Azores home. But you can never leave that darn shop without some other goodies from the bargain bin so we now have a dozen throw-away paintbrushes (€10), a set of hole drills (€4.50), another drill gadget and some wine.

And then it was handshakes and hugs farewell to Ian and Sian, lines cast, two locks shared

Lady lockie working the sluices.

Our last lock together.

and finally a toot goodbye as we turned onto the Burgundy Canal

We're turning left.

Bon voyage!

starting the first of our 113 ‘uphill and 76 ‘downhill’ locks with the five meter rise Laroche lock

just before lunch hour, sharing it with a Le Boat whose French hirers had obviously had the boat for a while and were very comfortable in the lock, taking lots of selfies and admiring Lynn’s rather sad looking gardening efforts.

Lunch hour was spent moored at Migennes with the very polite and pleasant Le Boat gent trying to cajole us into returning to their base on Saturday for the Fete du Port – stalls, exhibitions, fireworks…

Migennes Le Boat base.

The kilometer up to the next lock was like cruising in an aquarium – aquamarine water, big fish swimming by, swiftly swaying weed (with our propeller arrangement, a bit of a problem initially) and not too much breeze. The lockie at the next lock might possibly have over-napped after lunch but arrived twenty minutes late whistling “Jesus Christ Superstar”, smiling as if he were spot on time, piled the water in, and presented Lynn with a picked bunch of Irises with a comment to me “It’s the French way – but only for women”.

Finally, we arrived at Brienon, sidled into a side-on mooring thus avoiding the much-hated stern-on bays reserved for most visitors, negotiated with the very friendly Nichols hire-boat base fella, paid our dues for two days stay, checked the bilges for diesel (None! Well done M. Carter), showered and poured ourselves a ‘luppa’ (lunch/supper) glass of wine to go with our late afternoon ‘luppa’ of black pudding (boudin noir sausage) and pommes – and chilled. ‘Tea’, as I think the British would call it, was smoked trout, black pepper, capers and baguette. Tough life!

We are moored on the right behind the red-hulled barge.

Brienon (or to give it its official name, Brienon-sur-Armançon), once a seat of formidable power, is a quaint little town with a real feeling of antiquity as it should have, dating from the construction of its church in the 7^th Century.

The Mairie.

The Collegiate Church of St Loup first erected in the early 600's
but has been destroyed, rebuilt and altered a number of times since.

The reliquary holding St Loup's heart.

Madame Joan also visited.

The town center.

An unusual washhouse.

One of the boulangeries.

The 'pain gruyere' which we wanted to buy had to be ordered in advance
so a simple demi (half) baguette will have to do.

Sunday is the annual Fête du Port with a lot of happenings but we will probably be a couple of kilometers upstream then and might ride back for the event.

French patience continues to amaze. A large group of youngsters arrived in the nearby parking lot, possibly to cool off and have a drink. When it was time to proceed, their leader (a teacher?) bedecked in his bright orange safety jacket, plonked his bike and himself in the middle of the road and stopped all the traffic while the group wheeled themselves into town; not a hoot, not a raised fist, nothing. Tres gentile.

Part of the group re-assembled on the opposite bank.

Believing there to be a market later in the afternoon, we strolled back into town but perhaps it has been cancelled in light of the forthcoming Fête du Port – but we did get to find the ‘grand lavoir’, an even more impressive structure than that seen earlier.