Kerr Barging Blogs

There were several boats travelling with us along the Yonne. Our pace was dictated by a large, slow commercial barge ahead of us so we had plenty of time to enjoy the surroundings, including a barge going the other way which carrying a submarine, and the first families of cygnets for the year. The first couple had just one little chick, the next a huge family of eight.

Submarine on a barge!
We travelled with four other pleasure boats of very assorted types. It was important to co- operate in using these difficult sloping- sided locks. We may have described these before: when going down in the lock, the boat cannot be attached snugly to the edge because the boat would slide down the side scraping all the way or worse still, be stranded on the slope. Some locks have one or two pontoons which rise and fall with the lock level, but only one boat can be tied to a pontoon. This needs to be the heaviest boat- in our group, us- so other boats raft up beside so that we all rise and fall together. With only one pontoon we could not all fit across so  one captain offered to scrape down the side, so others tied to him as well.

The real fun started with those locks without a pontoon. Then we all needed to keep station towards the centre of the lock, far enough from the edge to avoid running out of water. It was obligatory to tie up though so we had a long line to the edge of the lock, but kept in the centre using motor and occasionally bow-thruster. A second barge was tied to us but we had to do the manouvering and we had  poles ready to push off the side if we came too close, a task taking complete concentration by both captain and forward hand. Of course, with the poles, we would have been pushing off 56 tonnes- a feat taking strength and patience, which was fortunately not required. By the end of the day we were all ready to stop at Montereau, at the junction with the Seine River.

The Seine like the Yonne was running very fast but we had an uneventful trip down towards Paris. Commercial traffic was quite heavy, pleasure boats very scarce. We found good spots to tie up each night and thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, despite the weather which was cold and wet. David can keep warm and dry all the time, in our centrally heated craft, and as the locks are well- spaced, Penny did not have too long outside before she too could enjoy the warmth. All the way along the River the water levels were very high.

We successfully negotiated Paris, though we were boarded by the Water Police who suggested that perhaps David should have stood aside to let a large commercial boat past at one point. They were very pleasant and helpful and extremely expert at coming aboard with both boats moving. They explained that it was because of the fast- moving water which meant that the big boats could not go at normal speeds. They were happy that we had done the right thing (speeding up well past the speed limit) but just asked for our continued vigilance. They also asked about kangaroos, had we cruised all the way from Australia, were we retired etc.

Here are some photos of Paris (allow a little time to load:

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We were pleased to moor that night at Bougival on the North side of Paris. The Impressionists liked to visit and paint here and Monet painted a number of the local scenes. We stayed the next day and  travelled by train to visit the Chateau of Versailles, which was  most impressive.

We could tell how high the river was throughout Paris where we could see only the top of the railings which marked the riverside walks. We discovered that there was more flooding in the Yonne and five days after it was opened for traffic, it had been closed again. The Seine remains open though there are some traffic restrictions in Paris. Looking ahead, we can travel very quickly along the Seine to Rouen, our next intended destination, but we are a bit worried about getting back against such a strong current. The commercial barges travelling upstream are really struggling to make headway. We are at the moment in Andresy, just near the junction with the Oise, enjoying some time in a peaceful backwater while we decide where to go next.

Almost finally, an example of the gracious language used in official advices from the VNF:

"Distinguished boatmen and users of the waterway are asked to respect the signs in place and comply with the recommendations that will be given by the officers Waterways of France or Fluvial Brigade."

and finally, some photos from Versailles:

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Best Regards,

Penny and Dave 

Anja turns 110 years old today. The record of her original registration, dated 18th May 1903, shows her as registered as "Excelsior"in Hoogezand, a ship- building village in Groningen, northeast Netherlands.

We decided to celebrate her birthday by continuing along the Yonne River and all went very well until we entered the lock of St Bond. The lock gates could not be closed fully because a log was in the way, so the lock- keeper poked around with a long spike until he had impaled the log, a huge piece of wood. Still the gates refused to close. Eventually after bringing in a more senior lock keeper, and together spearing and removing several more logs, the gates finally closed fully.

By then another boat was waiting for the lock, so they were opened again to let that boat in -but  another log became stuck under the lock gates, so a diver was called and turned up 2 1/2 hours later. He was quick and efficient, removing the offending log and many others. Finally six and a half hours later, the lock worked properly and we emerged on the other side. So Anja spent most of her birthday in the lock of St Bond rather than happily sailing down the Yonne. 

 Birthday Girl ANJA with Linda and Eric on their Narrow Boat

Best Regards,

Penny and Dave

As we hoped, Anja was craned back into the water only one week late, once we had worked our way through the Public Holidays. Penny's sister Annette arrived from her conference in Rome to a boat still on land but she is very adaptable and took that in her stride- from a private audience with the Pope one day to climbing a ladder to get on board our boat the next.

Once we were in the water we confidently set off down the Yonne to the first lock. Although the water level had dropped the current was very strong but the VNF site which showed lock closures did not show that this part of the Yonne was closed. We soon found out that the site was wrong- the lock, and this section of the River, were closed and the eclusier believed that it would be at least three days before it was opened. 

In the event it was one more week before these locks opened, and in the meantime we discovered another VNF page, a daily update, which continued to show the locks as closed day after day. Fortunately the nearby Burgundy Canal was open so we spent some time popping along it to the delightful town of St Florentin. So another week passed and Annette returned home. Finally the word went round that the  Yonne would be open tomorrow- but at this critical moment there was no daily update issued in the evening, as was usual! In the morning we woke to find that a separate "Advice" had been issued that the entire length of the Yonne was finally opened. We still have not found out why the river was closed for so long after the water seemed to have subsided.

The Jube (screen) at St Florentin
The enforced fortnight's delay had not bothered us at all. There are always plenty of tasks to be done and it was good to have relaxed time with our visitor. However, once the river was opened, we were the first boat through from the Burgundy Canal onto the Yonne River, and very happily entered the lock which we had found closed a week before. We had to skirt a large tree caught in the approach wall, and while we were in the lock a VNF (Waterways) barge came up behind us and lifted it with a crane, carrying it upright to the following lock where it deposited it on land, presumably to be collected later with the many other large bits of wood collected along the lock banks.

TWICE we have had to miss this tree, but now it is gone
The work barge travelled with us for the rest of the day and we were very grateful for its company when, in a narrow part of the river, a large submerged log became jammed in our propeller, bringing the engine to an abrupt halt. It would not restart easily and we were drifting into the bank (with Penny waving the red "danger" flag because three boats were close behind) when the barge driver, establishing that we had a problem, took us in tow alongside and transported us three kilometres to the next lock. At that point we tried the engine carefully in reverse and lo and behold, the log floated out. David checked the engine and gears, to find everything working normally. What a reprieve. Our day continued happily, dodging many more logs though the dangerous ones were those that were submerged. It was good to reach Villeneuve and at last feel as if we had started our 2013
travels.

Best Regards,

Penny and David

I'm not sure what the correct term is for  travelling on the water in a barge, but I've decided to compromise and term it "sailing". I could say "barging" but that has other connotations. Perhaps "boating" works best, so maybe this blog should be called "getting ready to go boating".

We returned from Italy ready to roll up our sleeves to prepare Anja for the year. We had plans for improvements, very domestic ones such as installing an electric toilet and re- enamelling our very worn sink. The duck boards on the back deck were showing signs of rot so needed attention. David had brought swaging tools all the way from Sydney to fix and improve the rigging on our mast (which is why maybe we can get away with calling our activity "sailing"). Some tasks are always there, like cleaning decks, topsides and windows, touch up painting both inside and out, and generally making sure that all systems have survived the winter intact. Our pots of plants needed to be prepared to decorate Anja appropriately and to enhance our salads during the summer.

Before we left Australia we had consulted our Chambres d'Hotes host Christian to locate someone to re-cover our cushions. He put us onto a Charbuy local business, Bout d'Coton and Christelle agreed to make them. Her husband picked up the cushions from the barge, some 15 kilometres away, and she measured up how much fabric we needed. She told us where to purchase it so we bought and delivered it on the day we spent here before going to Italy. While we were away we received regular updates with some queries for us to answer. By the time we arrived back, all the work was done and waiting to be picked up. Christelle had thought of every bit of detail in achieving an excellent result at an unexpectedly low price. She topped it off by making a bag for "Treasures" for our granddaughter (who was in one of the photos of the cushions) so that she could better enjoy her walks with grandpa and grandma.

We have worked very hard, though with a few set- backs. First of all, it rained, day after day. We had two fine days in a week. Fortunately most of our major tasks were inside ones, but some of the painting of duck- boards had to be done by finding dry spots under Anja's hull. 

The other result of all this rain was that the River Yonne where our boat is stored, is in flood and has been closed to navigation for almost a week. We were to be launched four days ago but the river is still too high and running much too fast- and there is nowhere to go as all the locks are closed. We are now staying on the boat, on the land, as we had checked out of our accommodation and returned our hired car. Our previous quick blog describes how the river rose a second time, even higher than the first. It is still flooded but at last we can get off the boat without getting wet feet.

Meanwhile there are plenty of tasks to occupy our time and we hope that this will mean a more relaxed life once we do get underway.
May 8th (WW11 Victory day) and May 9th (Ascension Thursday) are both public holidays, as was May 1st (Labour Day) so there are some we now have to wait until Friday for any chance to be launched.

Best regards,

Penny and Dave

Simon's boatyard craned us back into the water on Friday afternoon. Penny does not like to watch this activity (too scared) so she and her sister Annette went for a long walk and returned with perfect timing.

While they were away, our good friend Christian arrived with a package for me (David). It contained a replacement camera filter for the one broken accidentally in Italy. This was very good of Christian as he had to travel to the Post Office, coolect it and then bring it to us.

Thank you very much Christian and Chantal for your kindness!

We headed off down the Yonne River to the first lock but discovered to our surprise that it was CLOSED despite what the web site said (that the river had been re-opened). Indeed, the map on the VNF website still shows Green (open).

So, we had a pleasant overnight stop at Laroche St Cydroine and tehn went into the Migennes Basin. This was not straightforward because the eclusier (lock keeper) was no-where to be found. A friend in the harbour had a car and very kindly drove me to the next lock where we found the young eclusier having a picnic afternoon tea with his girlfriend. He was very embarassed and quickly returned to operate the lock. I guess he did not expect anbyone to arrive from a closed River...but he forgot that there is a boatyard full of people anxious to get under way on the water after winter. Fortunately, 99% of eclusiers are much more diligent that he.

It has been very difficult to find out when the river might re-open. Seems to be a day by day thing. So, Moday, we decided to move and went up the Bourgogne Canal to a pleasant town called St Florentine. We have been here before. It is a very attractive place and has, in its Church, some of the oldest and best preserved coloured glass windows in France. As well, there are detailed descriptions in three languages and you guide yourself after obtaining the key from the Tourist Bureau.

Best Regards,

Dave & Penny