From Paris to Chalon-s-Saône via the canal du Loing, de Briare, Latéral à la Loire et du Centre

Click on the small pictures to see an enlargement of them.

 
The French canals are something to behold. Lots of beautiful places on the canals and nearby. Except on the rivers Seine and Rhone, the locks are mostly between 6 to 10 feet deep.
 
Here in a typical lock, we are looking upstream as the gate opens and a barge is approaching the lock.
 
Here we are looking back, downstream. Some locks, like this one are in the open countryside.
 

 
Others, like this one are now in the middle of small villages that developed around them.
 
At Briare, we were joined by our nephew from La Rochelle, Willy Proust, his wife Claude and their three children: Antoine, Jeanne and Camille. They travelled with us for 5 days. Here we are leaving E. Galois for a bicycle excursion. For 5 days we carried 4 adult and 3 children bikes on the boat!

 
On this excursion we went ahead of the boat to visit the Bridge Canal of Briare. This bridge, built a century ago by Eiffel, of the Eiffel Tower fame, spans the river Loire, that can be seen as the white marks on each side of the bridge. The next day we sailed with E. Galois over the bridge.
 
In the evening we would tie the boat on the side of the canal. Often, as shown here, we had to pole out the stearn of the boat because of the shallow depth. When the Prousts were with us we could not all sleep on board. We would pitch a tent on the side of the canal for Willie and Claude. The children, of course, slept on board with us.

 
Here Jeanne is reading to her younger sister Camille.
 
and here Antoine proudly steers E. Galois.
 
The three children are obviously enjoying themselves in the cockpit with their Aunt Claire.

 

 

 
Shortly after the departure of the Prousts, we were joined by the Tards and the Cerdellis. Here we had tied to the side of the canal for lunch. Claire is taking the picture and Philo is taking a nap in the grass on shore!
 
Here is another fantastic stop for the night. We are at a campground on the side of the canal, set up by the little village nearby for the benefit of tourists cruising the canal. Except for the rivers Seine and Rhone, navigation in the French canals stops after sunset. Claire took that picture from a bridge over the canal.

 
Here is a close up view of the simple, and old, mechanism used to open and close the lock gates. Often Francis had to go ashore to crank open, or close, one of the lock gates while the lock master was cranking open, or close, the other one.
 
We stoped for a day in order to visit the Basilica of Paray-le-Monial near the canal. Most of this Basilica dates from the 14th century.
 
Our friends from Los Angeles: Paula and Bud Taplin visited us on the canals. Bud had helped me raise E. Galois' mast in Oak Ridge. When he learned we were planing to cruise the French canals, he made us promise to call him so they could spend a few days with us there. Here they are!

We are now in the Saone river with more canals before the Med.

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