We got the fenders, at last. We had to ride out to the courier distribution centre a few kilometres away but with the scooter that was no hardship. We also collected Frank’s bike, and with newly fixed pedals he was able to ride it back to the port without the dare-devil antics we had to deploy in order to get it to the repair shop in the first place.

So, onwards and upwards through the locks we go. But only about 10kms and 3 locks to the Halte Nautique of Sillery. WOW! What a difference. Quiet, scenic, big pontoons that can easily hold 20 boats of our size – and in fact will take up to 25 meter boats. Great swimming for the boys and good leadless walking straight off the pontoon.

And, as we got a hammerhead berth, we have also attached the swim ladder to the side of Thirza and have had a couple of nice swims in very clean and clear water. We are usually a bit dubious of swimming in canals but there is at least one swimming club locally because there are numerous swimmers up and down past the boat every day. Not to mention the canoes and kayaks that glide past.

To top it all off, we are in the heart of the Champagne Vineyards with Veuve Clicquot, Bollinger, Moet & Chandon and Pommery (to name just a few) all having vines on the hillsides around us.  Patsy and Eddie would LOVE it here!!

Strange though, Nick and Fiona are heading to Diou for a break and they intended to visit us on the way back. When they heard where we were they changed their plans to visit on the way down………can’t think why!

It has cooled down a little these past couple of days and we took a cycle ride up to Verzenay, one of the Grand Cru villages. Our ride took us through the vineyards, which all look to be in top condition and full to bursting with small young grapes. Of course, Frank had to try one and although he said they’re really bitter at the moment he is predicting a vintage year……let’s see if Dominique Demarville agrees! (By the way, he is only the 10th Cellar Master for the house of Veuve Clicquot in over 240 years).

So, England are out – even beaten by the Belgians – and it’s a France / Croatia World Cup final.  We decided to have lunch out and ate at Edgar’s located in The Forum.  We weren’t holding much hope of a decent meal but were both very pleasantly surprised by our meals.

By 3pm we were finished and decided to walk towards the Fontaine Sube.  As we get closer the crowds thicken and it’s clear there are several bars and cafes that will be showing the match.  Blue, white and red is being adorned on bodies and faces and we are soon in among the eager French supporters waiting for the game to start.  It was a great atmosphere but as it got busier people started to let off fireworks in the street. Bangers mainly, but some of them packed a punch.  We had the dogs with us and they were starting to get jumpy so, with still 2 hours to kick off, we headed back to the boat.

During the match, every time France scored the supporters roar of encouragement coming from just about every hotel, home and business around us was amazing and when the final whistle blew they took a to the streets – in their droves!!

The halte nautique in Reims is next to an intersection of roads and every car that passed was sounding their horn, waving flags and kids out of their windows and carrying joy riders in their open boots.  It was a sight to see but nerve wracking watching some of the antics and after a few hours and few bangers being let off near the boat we were getting fed up with it.  In fairness by half past midnight it was pretty much over and normality was restored.

We’ve taken the opportunity of our stop here to get a few jobs done so Monday was a work day.  So was Tuesday morning but Tuesday afternoon we ticked a box on our ‘To Do’ list.  We visited Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin for a tour.

What a great experience!  The aging wine is kept in old chalk mines known as Crayères approximately 25meters below ground.  This area is pretty much built on chalk and there are over 1000 Crayères in Reims alone.  450 belong to the house of Veuve Cliquot and they alone store 40 million bottles of wine in 25kms of this cold, strange underground cave system.  Considering each bottle contains 7 million bubbles (apparently) it makes the mind boggle how many tiny bubbles sit beneath Reims – imagine if all the corks popped at once!!!!

One final lovely fact about the house of Veuve Clicquot, is that every employee who reaches 40 years service has one of the Crayères dedicated to him/her and a plaque is erected in their honour.

Of course, the best bit of the tour was the tasting afterwards and we sat out in the garden of the visitors centre in the sunshine drinking 2008 vintage champagne for a very pleasant hour….perfik!!

Now today we await news of Frank’s bike being repaired and the redelivery of fenders ordered from the UK.  They didn’t deliver at first because the company we bought them from messed up the address – badly – and even though there is only one halte nautique in Reims the courier said he couldn’t find us. We’ve located the local parcel pick up place and the nice lady said she would call the man and get them delivered to her instead.  At 9.30 this morning she said she’d call me as soon as she’d spoken to him – it’s 2pm now. Oh well – C’est France!!

After the boys had a good run around playing what appears to be their own version of British Bulldog, we set off. Just as all lines are in and we are gently pushing Thirza away from the bank, Brody decides he is getting off. After a game of “chase me” I catch up with him and we are on our way.

It didn’t take us long to complete the next section to the lock and before we know it we were locking into the Canal de l’Aisne a la Marne. Wow, what a difference. Suddenly we are in the smaller canals, with locks designed for the old Freycinet barges at just 40.5m long and 5.05m wide. It is a bit more challenging for the helmsman/woman as it requires more accuracy but once you’re in the lock you can’t get too out of shape because we are 4m wide, leaving only ½m each side of the boat (even less when you take the fenders into account).

The northern end of the canal is lovely, and the first few kms promise so much more in terms of scenery. There are also numerus mooring possibilities and we both feel instantly calmer and more relaxed. At lock 4 we stopped for a spot of lunch and with just 2 more locks to go before the 12km run into Reims we decided to complete the locks then stop somewhere for the night before the final leg.

We have long pronounced Reims as ‘Rem’, having stopped the original ‘Reems’ that we used to say. As we came along the last few canals and were asked our destination we realised that ‘Rem’ is met with confusion. We say “Champagne” and the response is ‘Ah, Rass!’. So ‘Rem’ is pronounced ‘Rass’…….who knew!!

Anyway, having completed the last lock of the day we look for a nice place to stop. There was nothing. Really, nothing at all. So we went on until we reached the Halt Nautique in Reims – almost daring to hope there might be a spot for us. And there was – right along the quayside wall where we could get the scooter off – perfect!

It was late and we were tired so we decided to leave getting the scooter off until the following day. That evening and all through the night one after the other hobos came and sat on the bench outside the boat, drinking, smoking, laughing and talking to themselves. First thing in the morning we got the scooter off and moved across to the berth next to us – far enough away from the quayside to get some piece of mind – and peace and quiet! We’ll work out how to get it back on again when the time comes. That night (Friday 13^th July) they had a huge firework display which started at 23:00 to welcome in Bastille Day. It turned out to be in the Leo Lagrange park, which is on the opposite canal bank to the halte. We set up our lounger chairs on the coach-roof and couldn’t believe our luck when this incredible display started right in front of our eyes! Ringside seats or what! It was a late night with much merriment among the people of Reims but we were very content in our new berth away from the quayside.

With the scooter we were able to find somewhere to repair Frank’s bike (the spindle holding the pedals together seems to have broken). We found a place about 7kms away at a large sports store called Decathlon where they have a repair shop. The guy spoke good English and was confident he could fix the bike. All we had to do was get the bike to him. This is when you wish you had a car.

We went back to the boat and contemplated the conundrum with a glass of Pimms. Then decided the best way to get there was by Frank driving the scooter and me holding on to a rope tied to the back box. It worked a treat – although it would be fair to say it was not strictly legal (at all!!!) and not strictly safe. It took a couple of false starts for me to get into the habit of not holding the handle bars with the same hand that I was holding the rope with while we got underway – I had to ensure the pull away was as smooth as possible. Once under way it was ok and we were able to do 15-20mph without any problem. Traffic lights and roundabouts were the trickiest, with the stop/starts and the need for Frank to stay further into the road than usual to ensure he didn’t force me into the kerb.

Only once did we see the Police Municipale de Reims so I quickly let go of the rope and coasted into the kerb, then walked until we were a good way past them before picking up my ‘tow’ again. Great fun!

One downside of being in a city is the fact we are never too far from a busy road so the dogs have to be walked on extending leads, rather than have their usual leadless freedom. That said, on the opposite canal bank not only can they have a carefree walk but we have also found a spot where the bank has collapsed making it possible for the boys to get a swim.

We have taken the opportunity to order some large ball fenders to assist us in the locks and we have been assured they will be delivered to the halte on Wednesday. The bike should also be fixed by Wednesday so hopefully on Thursday we’ll be ready to move on. Between now and then we intend to enjoy Reims – it is a lovely city, very clean and lots to see.

We left Chauny after I had a Skype conference call with Dagmara – and the whole team came to say hello! It was great to see everyone (hello guys!!). We headed down the last stretch of the Canal de St Quentin and entered the Canal de l’Oise a l’Aisne, with all reports telling us how pretty it was.

Well, it was for the first 2 kms of forest but after a while that gets a bit humdrum and several kms later it’s just boring. Stopping places are few and far between and when you get a recognised “halte nautique” it is full. So, we ended up stopping just after lock 7, about 7kms away from the entrance to the Souterraine de Braye. In the morning we left at 7:30 because I had another work conference call at 10:30 and we were happily tied up at the beginning of the summit level, just after lock 9, with the intention of staying the night and tackling the tunnel first thing in the morning.

We have these small trellis’s that we use to keep the dogs in or out of places and we have found them really useful when we are on a pontoon, to stop them getting off the pontoon and into trouble. As there was no sign of anyone else around we put our “gate” up and let the dogs have a run around. The next thing the guy running the halte came along with his 2 dogs, who came crashing down the pontoon and literally through the trellis. We managed to get our boys safely back on board but the trellis didn’t survive. The guy then goes on the demand his “sept euro” for the night and tells us we can have electric, no problem, and water if we have a 50-meter hose!!! We informed him the trellis had cost “dix euro” and that if we couldn’t have water there was no point in stopping. He was rude and arrogant, speaking very quickly in French – and I know he spoke perfect English, he was just being an arse.

I managed to get my conference call in but we decided to move on before the anglo-french relations broke down further. Just a couple of kms on and we entered the tunnel. It is a wide tunnel that is 2356m long and dimly lit by wide-spaced lights meaning you have a light then dark intermittently along its length. It took us 45 minutes to get through using our usual method – me on the bow with a fender just in case Frank wandered too close to one side or the other. About halfway through I spotted a kingfisher on the towpath just in front of us. As the bow of Thirza came level with him he took off and flew ahead into the gloom. After a short while I could see him again on the towpath. Again, as the bow came level with him he took off ahead of us. They are a beautiful bird. His iridescent blue feathers glistened intermittently as he flew in and out of the light. This pattern repeated several times and continued until his final flight took him out of the tunnel and into the sunshine. It was a magical experience – it made my day.

Four down-locks later we left the Canal de l’Oise a l’Aisne and joined the Canal Lateral a l’Aisne at Bourg-et-Comin where there is a pontoon with electricity and water – only there wasn’t enough space for us so we headed on, now feeling a little tired. It soon became clear that there are very few stopping places on this stretch of canal and by 5pm we were wondering if we would ever find anywhere to stop. Finally, we spot a possibility just beyond the bridge at Pontavert. It wasn’t a recognised mooring and there were no bollards to tie to – but there were holes in the sheet piling that form the canal bank. Part of the kit that Roger and Ann left on board when we bought Thirza from them were lengths of good rope, each with a huge hook on the end. We think they are meant to be used with the stakes but they made a perfect job of securing us to the bank.

We had a lovely evening, walked the dogs and had a few bevvies to celebrate our good fortune at finding such a great place to moor.

So, the VNF turned up as promised to start work at 8am and, in fairness to them, they managed to cut away enough of the smaller branches to allow us to creep over the top of tree’s main trunk.

With all three boats safely over the obstacle we arrive in good time for the 09:30 tow through the Grand Souterraine. You have to be towed through because the tunnel is 5.67kns long and was built long before boats had engines, so there is no ventilation. Therefore, engines must be cut for the duration.

Well, what a nightmare. With Victoria ahead, we were lined up to go second and put 2 lines from our bow stanchions crossed over then attached to Victoria’s stern stanchions. Only when we went to hook up Idefix behind us using the same method did we realise that the lines would put upward pressure on the scooter platform. It was designed to take the load downwards, not up.   We said we needed to go to the back of the line and the “professional” as he called himself got the hump because this would delay things. Tough. It’s our boat and we are not putting it at risk. We worked our way to the back of the queue and tied to Idefix’s stern.

The electric tug then drags all three boats – boats whose engines are now off – around a curve in the canal, bouncing them off the towpath as it went. Well, the language from all three boats would make Chubby Brown blush!!

It didn’t get any better. As we all make minor adjustments to ropes, steering and bow thruster it has a knock-on effect down the line and before you know it we are all zigzagging from one side of the tunnel to the other bouncing off the wall one side and the walkway the other. Just a few minutes in and we knew this was going to the longest 2 hours of our lives!!

Eventually, after what seemed an eternity, we came out into the light, the sun and the warmth of the day, thankful that we hadn’t sustained any damage and determined that we would NEVER repeat that experience.

The next tunnel, just a few kilometres on, is only 1.098kms long so you go through under your own steam. We allowed the other two boats to get well ahead of us so we weren’t affected by their fumes and had a much more pleasant experience this time.

Feeling frazzled and ready to rest we stopped just below Lock 19 at Lesdins. And, joy of joy, there is a boulangerie on the side of the canal! Our mooring was in the shade, thankfully, and we enjoyed the last of the day drinking Crement de Bourgogne with a little drop of Kir.

The next morning we visited the boulangerie for bread, croissants and pain au chocolate before moving on through the next few locks with the intention of stopping in Saint-Quentin itself. Unfortunately the harbour was full of weed and in the middle of an industrial area. With fresh bread and reserves in the freezer we can survive a few more days before we need to find a supermarket so we moved on to a small place below lock 25 on the lower arm of the old canal at Pont-de-Tugny. An idyllic spot with cut grass, picnic tables and no through-road, so great for the dogs.

We had to use the stakes to moor because there were no bollards to tie to but with no other traffic on the canal this was fine. Out came the Cobb BBQ (great bit of kit!) and homemade burgers, tzatziki and pasta salad later we were rested, fed and comfortable. The boys had a great afternoon doing what they pleased – which was mostly sleep in the shade!!

Reluctant to leave our little spot this morning we move on to find a few provisions – which won’t be easy because it’s Sunday. However, the intention is to find somewhere we can stay tonight and shop tomorrow. We aim for Tergnier and Fragnier, which are on opposing banks and on the chart both look to be reasonable sized towns. Unfortunately, it soon becomes clear this is a big migrant area and not somewhere you would feel comfortable leaving the boat for any length of time.

We march on, eventually mooring at the port de plaisance in Chauny. As we approached it didn’t look like we would have any luck finding a berth – all the pontoons were just 15ft long. But as we passed by we noticed an alongside berth about 17 meters long – with the scooter platform Thirza is about 15.5 – 16 meters long. It was a tight squeeze but we managed to get in without a problem.

At last, stopped for the night with the prospect of filling the larder – perfect!!

So, we took a walk into town just to see what we had around us and it is a great place with every shop imaginable. We checked out the restaurants, clothes shops and patisseries in preparation for the big shop tomorrow. On the way back we stopped in a bar near to the port for a refresher before heading back to the boat and Frank realised he had lost his phone.

He retraced his steps but to no avail. A brand new iPhone 8 lost for good. Gutted!! We think someone has either found it – or lifted it from his pocket, because the minute we tried to ring it, it was switched off. We’ll head to the Police Municipal tomorrow in the vain hope someone may have handed it in but we aren’t holding out much hope.

Ah well, tomorrow is another day.

5th July. We left our mooring after lunch and ascended the last couple of locks before the big tunnel.  A Dutch motor yacht, Idefix, had passed us earlier and was hoping to make the early evening tow through the tunnel.  As we round a curve in the canal we can see he is alongside the bank, just in front of barge called Victoria.

It seemed strange for Idefix to have stopped here – the small town of Vendhuile is a kilometre further ahead…….until we saw why.  A huge tree had fallen across the canal.  Apparently it happened early this morning, narrowly missing Victoria, who was heading for the 9.30 tow through the tunnel today.

We pulled over behind our new neighbours and went for a look.  The guys on Victoria said they’d called the VNF at 8.30 this morning and 3 different people had come to have a look but then left again.

We all decided it was worth trying to use one of the boats to drag the tree out of the way, so Frank volunteered…..of course!! We rigged up a rope bridal between the two bow stanchions to spread the load and threw a line to Rien (Idefix) who was in his dinghy with Stuart (Victoria) surveying the tree.  Line attached to barge and tree Frank goes full astern.  The tree started to move and for a moment we thought we’d done it – but having reached its limit the tree simply bent back to it original place, taking Thirza with it!!!

At that same moment the VNF arrived with chainsaws etc. and set about cutting branches off left, right and centre.  With his dingy in the water Rien had gone to the base of the tree on the other bank and reported that it hadn’t broken but fallen over taking its roots with it.  He said the base was approx 1.5 meters in diameter so the parts of the tree we can see sticking up above the water really are just the tip of the iceberg. Unless the VNF have an underwater chainsaw I think we could be here for some time!

The beers and picky bits have come out so all that’s left to do is enjoy the afternoon shade (thankfully we have stopped in the shade!!) and watch the ‘experts’ at work.  C’est la vie – c’est France!!

What a fabulous spot Cambrai is. It is a large harbour just off the main canal and the start of the Canal de St Quentin. You can get water, electricity and more importantly shade!

Having got the scooter off the platform we were able to set about painting the scaffold poles that provide the framework and the “modesty skirt” that Gary built around the platform base to hide most of the frame. It looks great – thanks Gary!!

On Tuesday we went into town for lunch and were lucky to find a great place in the main square. We both had steak and chips with pepper sauce….yum! We also did a bit of sightseeing and enjoyed the quarter-hourly chime from the clock at the top of the Hotel de Ville (not a hotel, but the home of the Mayor (Mairie)) as well as a visit to the Cathedral – beautiful!

The boys have had a great time using the ramp for swimming – not to mention meeting all the other local pooches that came to cool off in the canal. It was 35 degrees yesterday in town – not sure what it is today (Wednesday) but it is a little more overcast. That said, it is still 28 degrees inside the boat – which, according to one of our fellow boaters is something to be envied as theirs is reading 35 degrees!!

We left Cambrai at 09:30 this morning having topped up the fuel and water tanks. We were surprised to find that we had only used 250 litres of fuel since we left Maldon! About ¼ of our total fuel capacity so we think we will be fine for getting to Diou without too much trouble.

The St Quentin canal is not as pretty as we’d hoped and opportunities for mooring are limited. There are 29kms between Cambrai and the Grand Souterraine (the big tunnel) which is 5.67kms long and you get towed through by an electric barge using a chain laid on the canal bed. It takes 2 hours and apparently it’s fine if you keep your helm dead centre and don’t panic……if you panic you’ll bounce from one wall to the other for 5.67 clicks!!

We had aimed to do about 10 locks and 15km today but ended up moored between lock 13 and 14 at 17:30 with only about 9kms to go to the tunnel. We came to this mooring to get some shade from the afternoon sun, but as we sat in the cool of the trees we could hear a storm gathering in the distance but getting closer. Before you know it, it’s blowing a hooley and raining with the thunder rumbling constantly. We were hoping it would pass overhead but the worst of it left to the south of us. The dogs loved the respite from the heat – to be fair we all did!!

We are booked to go through the tunnel on Friday morning so hopefully we will have a relaxed and quiet day tomorrow.

Left Estrun just after 9am and headed south to Cambrai on the Escaut.  What a difference the smaller canals make!  Not a single commercial barge; the locks are smaller and more manageable and on this section you are handed a remote control by the lockkeeper at the first lock and after that you are on your own.  100 metres from the lock gates you press the button for “Montant” (we’re heading up) and the locks sets for you and the gates open.  When you are in and tied up – in your own time – you press the “Go” button and the gates close behind you and water level is changed accordingly.  So easy.

At 12:00 we are tied up at the fuel quay so we can take on water.  We will get fuel on Wednesday when we leave here.  Having filled the water tank we moved over to a wonderful berth along the quay in the shade.  We got the scooter off for the first time and were both surprised at how easy it was.  Even easier still was the visit to the local shops for provisions!

We also realise we are right next to the public ramp, which proves to be the perfect pooch spa for the boys.  The final tick in the box is that we have a fab satellite signal and are still enough to keep it!!

We are looking forward to having a couple of days to explore and get some jobs done.  Watch this space!

1st July, we left Courcelles les Lens at 07:45 and headed towards our first lock at Douai.  We didn’t realise that the locks don’t open until 9am on a Sunday In this area but it didn’t matter because we arrived about five minutes to nine just as the lock keeper turned the lights from double red (lock closed) to red and green (lock being prepared).  We found ourselves sharing with a Spanish commercial barge and we cleared all three locks around Douai with him, and without incident.  Just after Arleux the Canal du Nord takes the vast bulk of the commercial traffic south towards Paris but we continued onto the Canal de l’Escaut when things became calmer, quieter, more scenic and narrower………BLISS!! Arrived in Estrun at 13:20 and took our spot on the public pontoon.  It is an idyllic location, off the main canal and part of a large basin surrounded by countryside.  The boys had a swim – followed by us – then it was on to the coach roof under the large umbrella for a few afternoon ZZZ’s!!  The weather hasn’t changed since we arrived in France…….SCORCHIO!!!

Hello!!  Hopefully tomorrow we will get a chance to do a bit more with our blog but in the mean time we thought it would good to recap on the journey so far:

• 25/06/2018 @02:10 – we left Bradwell Marina with a good sized moon behind us so it lit up the pathway out of the marina. By the time we reached the Wallet and Swin Spitway marker bouys the moon had disappeared to make way for a beautiful sunrise.  We reached Calais at 16:00 (17:00 local time) having crossed in larger seas than we would have hoped but there were no major incidents, so all good!
• At 22:00 (all times from now on are French time) we were able to move into the canal system and we moored in the public port for the night.
• 26/06/2018 – Happy Birthday Frank!! We leave Calais at 10:30 and start moving into the canal system proper.  We arrived in Watten at 16:30 and as the Haute Fluvial was full we headed for an empty pontoon in the main canal.  It turned out to be a lovely stop and we got a great meal in a small Café in the town.
• 27/06/2018 @ 10:10 – left Watten and tried a couple of places to stop en-route but they were full so we ended up in a small place called Aire sur la Lys at 16:30.
• 28/06/2018 @ 07:00 – Leave Aire sur la Lys and move on to La Basse, arriving at 11:15. This is a great place to stop (off the main canal and a good sized pontoon) with a fantastic Vietnamese restaurant that we’d visited 4 years ago when we did our Somme trip with MudSlide.  Happy to report the food was every bit as good!
• 29/06/2018 @ 07:30 leave La Basse and with no locks at all between us and Courcelles les Lens it was really easy cruising but a very industrial area. Arrived in the Haute Fluvial in Courcelle at 10:30.  What a stop!!  A great big inlet off the main canal, so no movement at all from passing commercial traffic.  We have water and electricity and it seems that we might have to pay if the Capitanerie can be bothered to come and get his money! We plan to have a full day off tomorrow.  The boys like it here – they had a lovely swim this afternoon!

That’s all for now folks but hopefully we’ll get some more material up tomorrow.