Life is stuck stuck stuck

---

Stuck Stuck Stuck



Well we survived a really nasty flu virus but it set our departure plans back a month, neither of us having any energy and Marg having to delay dental appointments which we are still trying to catch up on. Trying to leave our berth was fun as we were so deeply stuck in the mud that conventional desticking did not work.We tried with a line to the other side of the harbour, taken across by a friend in her kayak, we had to quickly pull it back as the local tourist boat decided to come through the harbour on a lunch cruise. We eventually managed to get VC off by levers, our neighbour used his boom of his catamaran, friends pushing with poles and lots of revs using the prop like a liquidiser blade.



We put Vintage Cru up on the hard just to clean the bottom and if weather permitted paint the hull, well we did this all in three days and she looks very nice now all one colour apart from the white non slip deck paint. So far The Kiwi grip deck paint seems to be good, non slip and easy to clean. Wish we had used it on Swara.



We had a shakedown cruise in the wrong direction to an old village about 5 klms away and had a delight full couple of days despite the nonstop torrential rain. Discovered that our calorifier (hot water tank) had a leak so we had to bypass it and use our gas hot water system. Will take it out some time and fix it or replace it. Free hot water is too good to miss out on.



We allowed 4 weeks to get to Moret which if we really rushed could be done in a week, unfortunately the torrential rain all over France had flooded the rivers and canals making them dangerous and some of the locks inoperable, about 4 or 5 days before we could proceed we were told so we stopped just outside Briare tied up to the bank, got lots of jobs done that we had not managed to do in the winter. Had very long walks with Yeti, tried cycling, and came back to the boat with a long pole for pushing off banks, just like something out of A Knights Tale.



Headed off and managed to do three locks when we came to a halt, we had gone into a lock with a yacht behind us waited and waited for a couple of hours whilst the lock keepers tried to close the gate, they then realised there was some sort of obstruction and spent another hour or two trying to clear it with grappling hooks etc. We then had to leave the lock whilst they called in the sapeurs and pompiers diver rescue team to come and see what the problem was. The divers came later that day and found a large stone wedged in the door bottom, they managed to clear it and we went through, we now had a tailback of yachts, barges, charter boats, hotel boats all who had caught up after this latest delay.

Decided to go as far as we could that day, tied up at a lock at dusk, and headed off at the crack of dawn (well for the VNF it was nine clock) went through lots of locks, we were now going down which makes line handling, getting on and off easier but is harder to get the boat into the lock without drifting around (no high walls to bounce off).



We were stopped at another lock just outside Chatillion Coligny and the VNF which run the canals gave us lots of reasons for the delay including too much water, not enough water, dangerous work in progress, we are fairly chilled out about stoppages but some of the other boats were getting very irate, mainly at the lack of information. We said the first time we came through the canals in Swara that if you were in a hurry you would definitely not enjoy the Canals.

French dogs are really smart as they can read signs, we have little black bags in every pocket, purse, wallet etc but never seem to have one at the right time and have to rush off to find a dispenser. The french dog owners obviously cannot read signs as we have yet to see one pick up after their dog,perhaps if they were as smart as their phones they could train their dogs to pick up after themselves.

We decided to stop for a week or so at Chatillion Coligny, nice Haulte Fluviale with electricity and water all free, we were given a lift back to Briare by car by a Briare boat owner who was leaving their boat in Chatillion Coligny. We picked up the Tilly and used it to touring, go shopping and take Yeti to his vet in Gien as he was suffering from an infestation of ticks and was quite ill. We are trying a different anti tick treatment and keeping him out of the long grass. We had some lovely weather whilst in Chatillion, just perfect but some rain for a day or so.

We tied up along the canal with some stakes in the bank just before a lock for one night, just being on your own in a lovely place makes you wonder where all the people are. We are sure we won’t be wondering as the summer progresses.

We have discovered a new wine called Gaillac, a still white wine thet just explodes into millions of bubbles in your mouth, made from a grape called Loin de L'Oeil which means far from the eye, yummy. We are still getting some fantastic Spanish reds from the discount shop Noz,plus lots of British bottled beers at very cheap prices.



We had some horrible squalls along the way with no visibility going into locks with some very strong gusts, picked up something around the prop going into a lock, bashed the hull as we had no power to spin the boat, Marg couldn’t see a thing as her glasses were rained on and missed her step getting off the boat, fell and hurt her leg, but carried on tying up the boat, what a trooper.



We stopped for a night tied up along the bank somewhere called Neronville where Yeti met a couple of Lhasa Assole dogs or something similiar which looked like him and are originally Tibetan dogs also.

Great fun was had by Yeti as he loves to play with other dogs but is a bit boisterous and some of the owners are a bit wary when this hairy bundle runs up waving his paws at their dogs.



Had decided not to stop in Montargis as we had not been impressed with the port de plasiance on the way down, it looks as if they had built a new one so we will stop on the way back down to Briare.



We stopped for a night in Nemours, again a free stop with electricity but apparently due to abuse the free use is going to stop.



Perhaps as we are getting old our memories are fading as we thought the stretch of the canal from Montargis to Moret was boring but it is not, it is quite lovely and we really enjoyed the trip to Moret.



The hault nautique at Moret was full with bigger boats so we decided to go on to St Mammaes which is on the Seine. Quite a palaver getting in a berth due to the current, but we managed to reverse in. With all the big barges going past there was an almost constant rough swell during the day, an interesting stop but not very comfortable. Highly entertaining watching other boats trying to get into the berths against the current, if we had not been there to take lines for them there could have been some mishaps.



Marg was taking Yeti for a walk along the very narrow streets where the drivers do not slow down even when there is no pavement. Trying to keep the dog safe she tripped over a rough pavement and fell in the road, the drivers didn’t even stop but just swerved around Marg. When she fell she stopped herself going under the cars by landing on her hand, snap!!! She broke her wrist! She managed to get back to the boat, and we iced her wrist and wrapped it up. Next day we went to the hospital had lots of X-rays and a broken wrist diagnosed. They sent Marg away with her wrist strapped and a piece of paper in French which we could not even read the writing. So a couple of days later we went back to Briare to see our English speaking doctor who told Marg that the piece of paper was a prescription for a wrist brace/splint that was supposed to be fitted by a chemist! What is strange is that we told them in the A& E that Margs French was not up to medical emergencies but they would still not let Pete in to help with the translation, apparently even if you are dying they do not allow spouses in with the patient.



Back and fore to doctors, hospitals, more X rays, pills and potions Marg is still suffering and is one handed, unfortunately it is her right wrist. This is going to limit our cruising this year until full strength returns. Other medical issues may also affect our plans, but we will see. Growing old sucks but the alternative is worse.



We had to wait a week in St Mammes but managed to get a place in Moret where we were waiting for Margs brother and later our friend Les from Perth, a delightful spot, very picturesque. Fontainebleau Chateau is just a few minutes away which was absolutely delightful, plus we have Fontainebleau forest on our doorstep, in which we have been enjoying all the forest walks, especially Yeti who has discovered mole hills, he turns up totally black from the soil. We have ducklings and cygnets around the boat and they are so cute but the Big Daddy Swan comes up to the boat and attacks Yeti so we have stopped feeding them.



We also have some really funky medieval towns close by such as Provins, go early before the crowds. We have been given various booklets by Tourist offices that do give substantail discounts on ticket prices if you use the vouchers. It is great having Tilly the van to go exploring, she just passed her first french MOT with flying colours, well white anyway.



Our next little trip is down the Seine to Paris where we have booked into the Paris Arsenal for a week and depending on health issues may stay a bit longer. The Arsenal is a port for pleasure boats right in the middle of Paris and is a perfect location for visiting all the touristy things. We are not sure what we will do after Paris now.

---