Cruising On The Canal Du Midi
By Lothar. Filed in France |
We leave Port Cassafieres on June 30 and cruise with our “Royal Classique” houseboat through the Languedoc countryside, arriving in Castelnaudary on July 5. We make some great memories during those 6 days:
We have sunny blue skies until the last day of the cruise. Every night, we have our dinner on the open sun deck. The canal and surrounding hills are peaceful and relaxing The dinners on board, created by our 3 ladies, are master pieces. The nights on board are quiet and restful. We get to meet new people.
I chat with some of the “Eclusieres” ( canal lock “working ladies”), most of them university students. They work 13 shifts (9am to 7 PM) per month. It is not a bad job. The girls are working on their tan, and once in a while have to push the buttons on the remote control, opening and closing the gates of the locks. Another fringe benefit : watching the novice house boat captains ramming the gates, locks and fellow traveler’s boats!
We meet boaters from Denmark, South Africa, Spain, Australia, England and France.
The French young father, with wife and 2 small children on his boat, is refusing my help, even though he can not maneuver his boat in the strong current in front of an opening canal lock.
In Capestang, we talk to a family from South Africa. They tell us about the corruption and problems, which they see happening in their country, trying to get the sports arenas and hotels ready for the 2010 World Cup Soccer. Quote :”The only ones who are ready for the World Cup are the gangsters and thieves”.
The Danish 2 couples are polite, but not very talkative. They seem experienced boaters and avoid any scratches on their new boat.
The Spaniard frequently “shows off” his seamanship by sitting sideways in the locks. It does not bother him the least. His teenage son (as well as the father) has no idea how to tie up a boat, when I show him a knot, while we all are waiting our turn to enter a lock.
The white-bearded Ernest-Hemingway-type with his young Asian girlfriend, whom we meet again over the course of several days, is always grumpy. Rolf speculates that he gets overworked in the bedroom. I believe that the sour mood stems from the fact that he has to do all the work on his boat “True Blue”, while the young lady “sits pretty”.
Our overnight ports are Villeneuve-les–Beziers, Capestang, Homps, Villesequelande and along the canal at PK 67 just before Castelnaudary.
We cruise “up-river” for 160 kilometers, and our boat gets a lift in 64 locks(“Ecluse” en Francais). This means 64 times unloading 2 crew members in front of the lock, waiting for the lock to open, slowly driving into the lock, throwing 2 lines to our people on top of the lock above us, who would hold the boat in position, while the water is rushing into the lock and slowly raising our boat to the height of the upper gate. And last not least, not to forget to tell our crew on land to hop back on the boat, prior to leaving the lock. In a double or triple lock, 2 of us would walk the lines from one lock chamber into the next, while the captain motors in (not too fast, so that our rope handlers on land can keep up with the boat).
Only once did I have to turn around to pick up Gabi at the last Ecluse (aka lock). Unnoticed by anybody on board, my wife had disappeared, to check out the wares being for sale in the “Eclusier’s” house!