Hi everybody
We've made it to the coast after an enjoyable and eventful trip that has brought us to SETE and not port St. Louis as intended, but more about that later. After a somewhat longer than expected stop at Chalone sur Saone we started down the river on Monday 12th June. I was more tired than I realised and after doing some sight seeing in the Alps, some shopping etc. and a rest, the weekend weather was rather poor with quite a wind blowing and yet another holiday so we were 48 hrs late in leaving, but I'm just about used to things taking longer than expected and I'm already reconciled to over wintering in Southern Spain and not the Canaries. Back to the trip.
We had met another British couple over the weekend, Bob and Marion on their 42ft Ketch "Stress Breaker". Their computer hard drive had packed in and we helped reload everything after a new hard drive had been fitted. The red wine in cartons from the local Carrefour Hypermarket chain flowed until the early hours of Monday morning and at 65p a carton I can recommend it to the house! Even without a headache or hangover it took a little time to get going on Monday and it was almost 10am by the time we left.
The weather was back to its hot sunny state and we
departed with the prospect of a good run down ahead of us. I
was looking forward to having the current with us and had
calculated on averaging 6knots an hour. I was a mile out; we
were soon doing 8Knots and it stayed there all the time we
were on the move. 
As we had already visited Tournous and Macon
we just motored through and we were going past my
intended stopping place by 3.30 so we decided to keep
moving. It took us until way past 8pm to find somewhere
else we could moor safely, in an old lock which was once
upon a time converted to a port du Plaisance then just
left to rot, but it kept us out of the wash of the hotel
boats which had been the only traffic we had seen all
day. The Saone and the Rhone are both a lot quieter than
expected and much quieter than the Seine. We had some
supper etc. and I checked the water filter which was
cleaner than when in the canals and we settled down for
the night having covered some 120 kilometres...almost
twice as far as I had intended.
Tuesday brought us another fine day and we were on our way quite early and had picked out a port du Plaisance at Les Roches de Condrieu to stay the night. We weren't going to stop in Lyon as it needs a few days to do it justice and we'd already been there a few years ago, so we just motored through and still quite amazed at how quiet the river was. The Saone proved uninteresting because of its sameness but we were expecting better scenery on the Rhone and joined it amidst the southern outskirts of Lyon and just prior to the first lock on the Rhone where we met two other pleasure boats, the first this week. There wasn't much of a wait for the lock and we were soon through and on our way. The river is very industrialised to begin with, mainly chemical plants, but already beyond them you could see the Alps.
The current was just as strong and we maintained 8 knots at an engine speed of 1200rpm which got us to Les Roches by 2pm and after a long day on Monday we decided to stop at the earlier time and relax. Some 40 kilometres south of Lyon, Les Roches is where the scenery starts and the industrialisation stops.
From now on both sides of the
river have hills and mountains, are littered with old
castles and you will pass under half a dozen very
spectacular new bridges of very modern design, but each
different from the rest, which have just gone up to
carry a new TGV train route The facilities at Les Roches
were well worth the £6. However, this was the first time
that our electric cable plug didn't fit the socket and
it was to happen again. It seems that facilities in the
south of France are older and have at least two
different types of sockets. The regular canal/river
users carry a supply of short adapter cables.
Over night on Tuesday the wind got up a bit and when we left on Wednesday morning it was blowing about force 4. The first lock was an hour away and we reached it without seeing another boat at all. The lights were on green and red which mean its being made ready for you so as this usually means about ten minutes we just held our position in the river. It was well over an hour later when the gates finally opened and then for a barge, which had come up behind us. The delay was because the lock keeper hadn't known we were on the river but knew about the barge from the previous lock keeper, and had gone home for breakfast. After this we always called up the lock when about ten to fifteen minutes away and it really helped. After our delay, the next three locks only took a total of 40 mins. These locks are quite large being 185mtrs long by 12 metres wide and vary in fall/rise between 9 and 23mtrs; that's 75 ft. and when you're at the bottom the sun doesn't shine any more! I suppose once there was the traffic to justify these locks, but in our six-day trip we only saw 4 hotel boats, 7 barges and no more than a dozen pleasure craft. There is of course the role they play in flood control and also some of them incorporate hydroelectric plants.
The
river is also home to four nuclear power stations and
one oil fired one. The wind had increased a bit more by
now, but it was blowing down stream and meant that on
occasion we were almost surfing. Anyway, with a stiff
breeze behind us and the locks working for us we were in
Valence earlier than expected but it gave us time to
look at a bit of the place and do some shopping at the
local Hypermarket; deck chairs, parasol etc. are so much
cheaper here and I just wish the boat was big enough for
a 6ft teak table and 8ft diameter teak framed parasol
for £90. All the local craft carry these items as basic
essentials and they are an essential; you need to keep
as much of the boat shaded as possible.
Thursday morning we were on our way again quite early with the intention of staying that night at St. Etienne, but the wind was even stronger today and we were doing 9knotts for long periods at a time and when we got there the pontoon was awash with waves breaking over it and the yacht moored there was bouncing all over the place so we decided to keep going and we stayed at Port2, a decaying port du Plaisance on the old river course just after the lock at Caderousse which meant going back on ourselves but it was worth it for a calm night as the old river course has been closed off and its almost a lake.
The wind was even stronger overnight so we didn't rush to leave on Friday morning, and having done an extra hour and one extra lock our day was to be 2 hours shorter than planned, so we didn't have to rush to be in Arles by teatime. The Capitianerie told us it would drop in the afternoon. As it was with the strong wind we were there by 2pm and were able to go and see the old coliseum which is now used for bull fights etc. and the rest of the sights.
The facilities here are water and electric on a pontoon which holds about six boats; most river boats here are about 40ft. long; and cost us £8, the most expensive yet, but this is a tourist town because of the Roman connection and all prices reflected this. Anyway, we spent an enjoyable afternoon evening and with having arrived so much earlier than expected it meant that tomorrow we would see the Med; our dream coming true?
Saturday morning and the decision has been made. Back up the river for 3 kilometres then into the Petit Rhone then the canal de Sete du Rhone at the lock at St. Gilles. Two other boats had talked about this route and as we intend to head for Spain it made sense to go in that direction rather than towards the French Riviera, which is quite close to Port St. Louis.
The petit Rhone isn't used by commercial traffic according to the guide, and has a channel marked with buoys all the way to the lock at St. Gilles. This is another long lock but the drop is under 2ft. Again it is more for flood control than anything else, but it is the only way into the canal de Sete du Rhone and onto the Midi since the closure of the lock at Beaucaire. For the first time since St. Mammes we were asked for our licence and asked where we would be entering the Med. We were checked into the system and out again. No one wanted an ICC, Insurance certificate etc. etc., Even the two Gendarmerie speed boats on the Rhone were more interested in sun bathing than in us! Once through the lock the canal is the narrowest yet and runs in straight lines for miles at a time, with openings into one of the Ethangs that surround it. This is Flamingo land and a sight not to be missed; there are thousands of them. It was near one of these openings that we spotted ahead of us a rather large object in the water, which turned out to be a barge so big that we couldn't have got passed it if we had met it anywhere else. The Belgian boat stuck behind it looked really fed up!
At this point it is worth stating that the guides are only a guide and can be quite inaccurate; it had said there weren't any barges. Halts don't exist because they haven't been built yet; or have closed down. Where we booked in on Saturday night at Palavas les Flots doesn't exist according to the guide, which is only one year old. We have been let down regards overnight stops not existing more often than they have existed and I feel that having spent quite a few pounds on them they should have been better. The photo in the Navicarte 16 Le Rhone guide dated Nov. 97 of Aigues Morte has to be at least 20 years old. You could manage without them if you had the confidence to do it.
Sunday we did a quick dash back to Chalone by train, almost 300 miles for £25, to collect the car so we could go and have a good look at the possible entry sites into the Med. We had three options regarding going into the Med., the first being at Aigues Mortes, where we found facilities for mast lifting etc. and at least 1.8mtrs of depth in the river. There are quite a few boats here and at least three British boats that over wintered. I'm not surprised as up 9mtrs. costs £550 for the year, but you only get water and electric, no showers toilets etc. The second option is Sete, where despite being told otherwise you can go into the Med and by the number of boats we saw there it is the most popular place.
There are 5
bridges that either lift or swing to let you through the
last three kilometres to the sea, and on the way there
are a fully equipped boat yard with all mast lifting
gear, a good halt with water and electric and at a flat
rate of 100FF per night regardless of size. Just before
you get to the sea there is a marina with all facilities
and mooring is stern to. The final option is Agde which
is where we were heading for, but having gone to look we
didn't bother. A very attractive town with a large
market but the boat facilities are virtually
non-existent despite what the guide says and we couldn't
recommend it to anyone.
We chose to come out at Sete, as per our original plans of 99. Having four roads and a railway line close to let you pass under makes you feel almost guilty. We are now moored in the marina and preparing for the first of a few short hops to Rosas in Spain. After some six weeks with the masts etc. down, we have decided on short hops to give us time to make sure everything works OK. and that we have adjusted the rigging correctly. We are really looking forward to doing some sailing and the water looks really inviting. There are a lot of yachts out every day and so far the wind hasn't risen too much and the sea state is basically calm to slight.
If you do this trip, I hope you enjoy it as much as we have. I came with a preconceived notion of the French from when I was at school and De Gaulle was president. How wrong I was. I have really enjoyed the place, the food and wine are excellent and the people except when driving or crossing the road, are very friendly and always try to help. We could have taken much longer over the trip and for those of you who can take extra time I advise you to do it as there are a lot of things to do and see, but we do have to be no further North than Almeira by October so we had to keep moving more often though we have had 5 weeks not on the move. It has been hard not treating the trip as a holiday but part of a very long journey, and I'm not sure how we will cope in the holiday resorts of Spain. A domestic and boat maintenance routine helps to maintain an air of reality. Living in shorts, T shirt and canvas shoes really cuts down on the washing, but bedding is too large to do by hand so we always have the pleasure of a laundrette to look forward to. In Chalone sur Saone we cheated and took everything to a laundry where even my socks came back ironed. We thought it may be sensible to have everything as clean as possible before putting them away for the next few months. It's only 22nd. June but the temp is hitting 30 every afternoon now and we have as much cover as possible on the boat. Once we start mooring on the anchor we hope to have the wind blowing through the boat most of the time where as now on a marina mooring we rely on a couple of fans. Don't come without one and a 12v. is very useful.
Out of interest facts for the trip from L'Havre to Sete are as follows: -
- Distance in kilometres.... 1420
- Locks 188
- Rise to top of locks 990ft
- - (Barometers go haywire but return to normal at the coast and sea level)
- Travelling days 25
Your boat will have more engine, tiller and morse control work than in about two normal seasons. Make sure everything is 100% OK before starting; the problems we have seen that have caused real problems for people could have been prevented if everything had been thoroughly checked before hand. Spare impeller for cooling system is a must...but not 20 as someone we've met is carrying. Don't worry about not being able to get what you want in the shopping line over here, the only thing we haven't seen so far is PG Tips tea bags, but there is the dried cat food that we brought twenty packs of!! Also, having just spent two days washing and polishing the boat I wish I had given her a double wax coating before leaving...it's been really hard getting all the dirt off.
I can't really think of much more to say than if you get
the chance DO IT, and don't put it off. We've attached a few
more photo's and if there is anything you'd like to know
please don't hesitate to contact us.
Phil and Carol
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