Unexcused Absences

Après Ski's Summer Mooring

Welcome back to France! There are so many reasons we are happy to back in France; the gorgeous countryside, the cheese, the wine, the bread, and the friendly people. But for all the planning we did for this trip, the last three days were not exactly what we anticipated.

First of all, I found out I have a broken foot about three weeks ago. My doctor confined my right foot to a removable cast (walking boot) until Christmas. Moving around the boat is rather difficult and walking long distances is impossible. Thanks to Kent who carried not only his carry-on bag but mine as well, the plane ride over was much easier than I anticipated! The airport in Paris treated me kindly, sending a wheelchair to transport me throught the airport. We even got to jump the lines at immigration, although I would certainly prefer to have a fully functional foot than being first in line.

The second and most unwelcome surprise occured at baggage claim. One of our checked bags did not arrive. Naturally, that particular bag contained the two sets of curtains I spent five weeks making (interior curtains and sun shades) as well as a custom set of exterior covers and a construction project Kent completed at home. Worse, not only did the bag miss the plane to Paris, but American Airlines had NO idea of its location. It simply dissapeared from their system. I immediately felt (and continue to feel) sick to my stomach at the thought of remaking the entire set of curtains.

Driving out of Paris, we turned south toward Auxerre, a favorite town of ours in Bourgogne. Pulling into town, we passed the Port de Plaissance where we spend several days in 2009. Auxerre is home to a wonderful E.Leclerc, a French supermarket chain. Walking in the door, the first thing you notice is the bar. Yes, there is a bar in the supermarket! In fact, nearly all big supermarkets have a bar; I call it the Land of Lost Men. They sit there, patiently waiting for their wives, drinking wine or tiny little glasses of liquour. It’s so very French, it makes me smile each time I see one.

This E.Leclerc hosts a particularly wonderful cheese department. The selection is vast, the quality good, and the prices excellent. Overwhelmed, Kent chose at random a creamy-looking wedge from the sale bin. Later on, we learned that Le Castelou (St. Albray), a creamy and rich cheese with a potent mushroom and truffle flavor, is NOT in the 800 page tome, The Cheese Lover’s Companion. A delicious discovery!

After Auxerre, we continued south toward the Étang de Baye (a wide, shallow lake), located in rural Bourgogne, to rendevous with our boat, Après Ski. Michel, the marina manager, greeted us warmly and quickly took us to her. We were anxious to inspect her since she made the trip from the South of France to Bourgogne without us, but everything appeared fine. Clearly, the crews who handled, craned, transported, and craned her again operated skillfully. [Boat owners reading this blog should feel free to get in touch with us for contact information for any of the service providers we mention.]

Heater element old and new

Unable to complete any of the projects whose supplies were in our lost luggage, we thought we would spend a few days using our rental car to tour the countryside. Sadly, it was not to be. Our third unexpected issue was a series of (minor) mechanical problems on the boat. First, the sink faucet in the galley (kitchen) started to leak. Connecting British boat plumbing, 5/8 inch pipe (15 mm) to a French faucet using only the 14 mm and 16mm parts available at the French bricolage (handyman) store presented a certain difficulty. Fortunately, a visit to Ted Johnson (more on him later) took care of that little crisis. In addition, our diesel-powered heater seemed to have broken over the summer, acting suspiciously like the wicking mechanism needed replacement. Discouraged by all the repair work required for Après Ski in addition to the prospect of redoing weeks and weeks of work to replace the items in our lost bag (most likely at our own expense thanks to American Airlines lost luggage policies), we passed a subdued, rainy evening on board.

The Thursday market in Corbigny signaled the end of our streak of bad luck. On the way to the market, American Airlines called to say they had located the bag. Supposedly, it will arrive on Monday. At the market, we purchased a gorgeous set of fall flowers at the market even though it is late in the season here in Bourgogne. In canal culture, flower pots distinguish you as an owner rather than a renter and signal pride of ownership. Après Ski’s flower pots require a very specific size of pot, and the flower vendor carried a beautiful selection of mums and lavender in our size. We have a beautiful new garden aboard.

First Outing of the Season - Happy Hour Cruise

That afternoon, we were very happy to make the acquaintance of Ted Johnson, who operates a chandlery in nearby Chitry-les-Mines. In canal culture, word-of-mouth reputation means everything. We have heard his name dropped all over the canal system, not only here but hundreds of miles away in the south; apparently he is the go-to guy for all canal-boat-related parts, gadgets, and adapters. A visit to Ted’s shop, Marine Diesel, a trip to the local hardware store, and a stop at Michel’s workshop at the marina, along with an afternoon’s work, and we had running water and a new faucet in the galley (kitchen). Amazingly, the plumbing adapters were 3 times the cost of the (admittedly inexpensive) faucet!

After Kent moved the stove and the disassembled the dish cabinet in order to reach the heater, he noticed that the maintenance sticker indicated that the wicking mechanism had last been changed in 2001, normally a three-year maintenance item. After swapping it for a new part and reassembling the galley, we had heat once again. This definitely made the cool lake-side mornings aboard Après Ski cheerier.

Exiting the Tunnel de Breuilles at the top of the Nivernais Canal

Over a two-day period, I did a thourough cleaning of Après Ski, wiping away the dust and grime of the summer. By Friday evening, the boat was provisioned, the maintenence items were fixed and the entire boat smelled like savon de Marseilles, a lavender-scented cleaning soap. In anticipation of a Saturday departure from the marina, we took Après Ski out for a Friday evening happy hour cruise. Although we didn’t go far, a trip along the quay of the Ètange de Baye at sunset seemed to signify that our work was over – time to play!

We set out on the canal at noon on Saturday. The Ètange de Baye is the water supply for the Canal du Nivernais, so the canal descends in both directions from Baye. We set off north along the canal, starting with a series of three tunnels that circumvent the top of the mountain, allowing a direct connection from the Ètange de Baye to the top of the Sardy staircasee, a series of 16 locks which descend throught the wild and beautiful Morvan forest. Check out the brief time lapse of the trip through the tunnels and a few of the first locks, along with a five-boat traffic jam between two locks:

Lock-keepers Tonio and Marie work the manual locks

At the top of the staircase, our team of lock keepers greeted us warmly, asking about our plans for the day and presenting us with a bouquet of freshly-picked flowers. When our eclusienne (lock-keeping work is often done by women in France) noticed I had a broken foot, she made a special effort to help me with line handling. Saturday was a perfect autumn day; warm and sunny but not too hot. The locks on the Nivernais are not only staffed by lock-keepers (rather than remotely controlled), they are mechanically operated. Absolutely nothing about the operation of the locks here has changed in over one hundred years. Lock-keepers crank the locks gates regulating the flow of water up and down by hand, as well as the large doors lock doors.

We enjoyed chatting with the lock-keepers, helping them crank all the mechanisms (it’s fascinating), and moving from one lock to the next. Hopefully the Nivernais Canal will remain a throwback to the original way of canal travel, with its mechanical locks and friendly “éclusiers” and “éclusiennes”.

We’ve now officially set out on our seven-week journey. Hopefully, our luggage will catch up with us during the coming week and mechanical issues will be kept to a minimum. Kent’s dad arrives Thursday, and we’re looking forward to his visit.

Week "Zero" history, one-half day of boating