Only 3 weeks!
Hard to believe how fast this winter has gone. It's like we just got back into our music and volunteering and now it's all coming to an end. We fly back to Paris on the 29th of April. After we arrive we hope to get together with Jonathan and Jeannie (on "Aleau") for breakfast and a couple of hours of catching up prior to catching the train from Gare de Lyon back to Auxonne. A 10-minute walk from the train station will have us back to Port Royal and C.A.R.I.B. III, hopefully in time for Pat to get a quick run to the grocery store while I get the water tank filling, and the water pump primed and running.
Below is a map showing the route we hope to cover this year.
After cleaning and preparing the boat for a couple of weeks, we expect to be leaving Auxonne sometime in the middle of May. The weather and the conditions of the waterways will determine our route towards Strasbourg, but the idea right now is to head north from Auxonne on the Petite Saone. This will take us to the Canal des Vosges. Some of you may remember that we started off on this route in 2021 on our way to the Netherlands; however, on that trip, just prior to reaching the Canal des Vosges, there was a breach in the canal, and we had to turn around and use a different route. Fingers crossed, this year we will be able to use this canal. The Canal des Vosges will bring us just to the south of Nancy and the Canal de la Marne au Rhin Est. Here we will have a decision to make. Do we continue to Strasbourg or do we take a side trip north of Nancy up the Moselle River to Metz? We intend to do the cruise to Metz sometime this summer, it is just a matter of deciding whether to do it before going to Strasbourg or after going to Strasbourg. You will have to follow the blog to see what we decide.
There is a highlight on the Canal de la Marne au Rhin Est that I am really looking forward to. It is called the "Plan incliné de St Louis," also known as the Arzviller boatlift.
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| Boatlift viewed from below. Coming from Nancy we will enter at the top of the boatlift. |
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| Boatlift viewed from the top as the lock basin ascends the inclined plane. |
I'm sure Pat will update the future blog when we do this, with more details. However, for now, I will let you know that it started operating in 1969 and replaced 17 locks over a 4 km stretch and raises the boats 44.5 meters.
