 |
| Shunting engine at Pogny |
Sunny and warm. We got up at seven to be ready to go down the lock at eight. Twisted the pole and the orange light flashed, but nothing else happened. Maeva phoned her Dad and he told her that the locks don’t open until nine on Sundays. We tied to a tree and waited. Fishermen were fishing just above the lock. There was no lock house, it had been demolished a long time ago. Into lock 6 La Chaussée (2.3m). 6.5kms to the next. Maeva was using my laptop to do some typing (her book, she said, about the sixth class). Mike put the pins in to run the Markon and generate electricity while we were moving for me to do two loads of washing. Took photos of engines at the silo just before Pogny. A converted péniche was moored in the village, it had no name and there was a tanker lorry parked alongside it. A man walking a dog came up a path from the river on to the towpath and just stood and stared. Lock 7 St Germain (2.7m) was empty with bottom end gates open. Twisted the pole and it reset itself to work for us and filled.
 |
| Moorings at Conde-sur-Marne |
The house was occupied, with a car parked outside. A DDE van was also parked there and the VNF man driving it told us there were two cruisers coming up from the port in Chalons. 3.75kms to lock 8 Sarry (2.5m) The hanging pole above the lock was missing but there was a man in the cabin to work it. Two boats came up, a large French cruiser with a small car on an extension added to the back of it like a large swimming platform, it was followed by a small Belgian cruiser. The VNF man was very officious, he absolutely insisted that we used a rope, Mike argued that it wasn’t necessary, he replied that it was the rule and that we should put ropes on in every lock. It was no use arguing that it was more dangerous to use ropes, he wouldn’t listen, so Mike put a loose rope on from the centre roof dolly. He was the first to insist on using a rope since Roanne! The lock was a mess, reconstruction work was still ongoing. This must have been the lock that caused Floan a two-week hold up as the workers had been injured when some scaffolding collapsed (we learned later that one of the seriously injured ones had died). The old house was empty and covered in graffiti. I made some sandwiches for lunch. After lunch I did some catching up on my laptop before we reached Condé and I had the call to tie up.
 |
| Mooring at Conde-sur-Marne |
No space except for on the very end of the piling with our stern overhanging behind Arséne’s boat Orlamonde. A very untidy converted lifeboat was moored in front of us opposite the new twist pole. We lashed the boat to the bank at 3.45 p.m. Gave Mike a hand to unload the moped and he went to get the car from Ecriennes. The place was heaving with tourists, several campervans were parked and people from some of the eighteen cruisers (Mike counted them) were sitting out on chairs in the shade under the trees. I got on with some chores, set the TV up, etc. Cristal-Canal arrived about an hour later and moored in front of the lifeboat. Had a hearty French welcome from Christelle and Jean-Max. They ran out hoses and electricity cables then put chairs and tables out under the trees. I sat and had a beer with them and a chat. Gérard arrived, he’d been to a family reunion – an Easter tradition. We said we would do a BBQ so I went to find some charcoal. Mike returned and put the bike back on the roof then helped search for the charcoal. Couldn’t find the new bag but we’d got half a bag of large stuff and loads of small, recovered stuff. Christelle lit it with some wood from by the BBQ opposite the boats. She grilled piles of sausages and said there was plenty as Gérard wasn’t eating (on a diet) and they’d eaten at lunchtime, so we ate salad and sausages and I’d taken some crisps and beer out too. Sat chatting as it grew dark, with lights on and mossie candles. Some very large moths in the trees were a bit of a nuisance for a while. Mike and I sat talking with Jean-Max and Gérard about improving Internet reception (many thanks again to Clive for his advice) before turning in around eleven.
No comments:
Post a Comment