Venturing Out

The heat wave finally ended in Toul on Monday, June 29. It was long and it was pretty brutal for a part of the world that isn't accustomed to those sorts of temperatures for extended periods of time. We were mostly "hunkered down" in CARIB during those days, as there wasn't much one could do outside in any comfort from 10 in the morning until the sun dropped behind the hills at half past 8 in the evening.   Morning walks were completed before 7 a.m. if possible. CARIB has 2 RV-type rooftop air conditioners, one for the salon area and one for the master stateroom. Murphy's Law being what it is, the salon unit decided at the outset of the heatwave that it was going to malfunction. At least we had a working bedroom air conditioner and could get good sleep, but being limited to that relatively small space for several days made the heatwave a mental challenge as much as a physical one. Lon was finally able to diagnose the problem a couple of days before the heatwave ended, but the fix requires a part that should arrive shortly--hopefully, before the next predicted heatwave builds in next week.

Clockwise from upper left: (1) It got a little wild in our mooring spot every time the nearby lock
emptied; (2) the "sheep mowers" look for the cool green grass to take their overnight rest;
(3) June 21 was Fete de la Musique day in France, with musical performances in cities and
towns throughout France. Due to the heat, we only went out after sundown to the town
 square close to T.S.N.I. to listen to the rock band, along with a rather sparse crowd; (4) in that
 same square we discovered that Port Saint Mansuy has the vestiges of an abbey that was founded
 in the 10th century and remained active until the French Revolution; (5) the roses in the rose
 garden near the City Hall and Cathedral were drooping from heat and lack of water.

"Angel's Pizza", operated at the port office on Friday and Saturday nights in
 summer by the owners of T.S.N.I., provided us with a welcome respite
from having to cook dinner in the heat. It was also the place to socialize with
 several other English-speaking boaters who, like us, were living a
 vampire-like existence in those days: inside in the dark during daylight hours
 and coming out in the evening. Toby the dog was happy to make the rounds
among the customers for petting or a dropped bit of pizza crust.

As suspected, the extended heat has not done the canals any good. The closures on the Meuse and Marne au Rhin Ouest canals have expanded, and the Vosges Canal to the south has also recently closed to navigation. The down time did allow us to make a few decisions regarding our stay in France. Early in the week of June 22 we spoke to the Dutch boat broker that we had intended to use for the sale of CARIB at the end of the boating season, and let him know that it was unlikely we would be able to get our barge to Rotterdam this year. That being the case, he will travel to us on July 9 to look at CARIB, take pictures, and do whatever else needs doing to get her listed for sale. Of course, that meant we would have some work to do to get CARIB ready for photos, but before that, we decided that we needed a few days away from the boat in a place that was readily accessible by train. 

The destination for our escape was the city of Lille, just south of the border with Belgium, and was picked for a couple of reasons. We would probably have boated through Lille on our way to Rotterdam and had heard good things about it from other boaters. As well, boating friends Jonathan and Jeannie would be cruising to Lille during our proposed travel days, and meeting up with them would add a wonderful element to our little trip.

We left Toul on Sunday morning, June 28. It was going to be the last hot day in Toul, but the cooler weather had already arrived in Lille. The existence of Lille was first mentioned in documents 10 centuries ago, its birth linked to being well situated for involvement in trade between the Netherlands, Flanders, and the Champagne Fairs. In the 12th and 13th centuries, the city was part of the territory of the Counts of Flanders. By the late 14th century, marriage brought Lille to the House of Burgundy, and within another century, another marriage brought it briefly under the rule of the Austrian Hapsburgs before it became part of the Spanish Netherlands in 1500. Louis XIV brought Lille into France in 1667. It is currently the tenth largest city and fourth largest metropolitan area in France.

Conveniently, we were able to rent a small apartment in the neighborhood immediately adjacent to the Citadelle Vauban and the canal where Jonathan and Jeannie were moored. They had arrived in Lille on the 28th as well, and we saw them often over the days that we were in town.

Upper: Barge "Aleau" moored in Lille across from the citadel site.
Lower: Jeannie and Jonathan welcomed us to dinner on the back deck
of Aleau on June 30.

We walked our feet off on the 29th and 30th, as is usual for us when we're exploring a new place. 

The great French military engineer under Louis XIV, the Marquis de Vauban, designed and
constructed the "Queen of Citadels," now called Citadelle Vauban. He was later appointed
 governor of the citadel by Louis. The citadel is currently surrounded by a huge amount of green
 space, and although it appears overgrown with vegetation from the outside, it still has an active
 military presence.

Two panoramic perspectives of buildings on the Place du Theatre (Theater Place).
Top: on the right, the darker building is The Old Stock Exchange (1652-53) and to its right
is the Rang du Beauregard, 17th century private houses.
Bottom, left to right: The Old Stock Exchange, the Rang du Beauregard, the Chamber of
Commerce and its belfry (1923), the opera house (1921). 

The Grand-Place, officially Place General de Gaulle. The plaza is a dividing "line" of sorts
between the medieval city (Vieux Lille) and the newer 19th century (and later) neighborhoods.

The Rihour Palace, the first stone of which was laid by one of the Dukes of Burgundy in
1453. It was the Lille town hall from 1664 until 1916, when a devastating fire destroyed much 
of the palace except for the main staircase and the chapel. It currently houses the Tourist Office.

Left: In a walk through old Lille, World Cup fever was apparent.
Upper right: a closer look at the Old Stock Exchange.
Lower right: the birthplace of former French president Charles de Gaulle.

The streets of Vieux Lille are still laid out in the old medieval style. 

Jeannie and I had lunch on the 29th at a charming Italian restaurant
in Vieux Lille, while Jonathan and Lon went for burgers across the
street. Our "mocktails" were awesomely refreshing after a morning of
walking, and the interior of the restaurant was stunning in a cozy way.

The Cathedral of Notre-Dame de la Treille (Our Lady of the Trellis) is an interesting anomaly. The foundation stone was laid in 1854 and completing it to the original design would have produced an entirely neo-Gothic edifice. Unfortunately, the lack of funds meant that the building was constructed in fits and starts over 150 years and was not completed until 1999. The earlier parts of the construction are neo-Gothic in style, but some of the chapels have an Art Nouveau esthetic, and the front facade is completely contemporary. 

Top: the front facade of the cathedral. The pointed arch uses metal
framework to enclose 110 plates of thin, translucent marble.
Bottom: the choir of the cathedral is neo-Gothic, with contemporary
touches in the pulpit and altar decorations.

Left: the chapel of Our Lady of the Trellis, with a floor mosaic of the city of Lille
 leading to it, has a traditional feel.
Right: the translucent marble of the front facade as viewed from inside the Cathedral has
a golden glow totally different from its white appearance when viewed from outside, and
has a contemporary esthetic.

I love striking and unexpected ways of presenting the "Stations of
the Cross." In the Cathedral, the stations were extremely modern
paintings. At top, several of these modern paintings were
placed in areas with fairly traditional stained-glass windows. At bottom
is a close up of the Third Station, Jesus Falls for the First Time.

Lon and I spent Tuesday morning, June 30, walking through the area of Lille developed in the 19th century. It was cool and cloudy that day, which actually felt quite wonderful after the heat of the previous two weeks. 

At top, the Palais des Beaux-Arts, one of the largest art museums
in France. Unfortunately for us, we were there on a Tuesday when it was closed.
At bottom, a beautiful governmental building, the Prefecture of Lille.

Left: the "new" city hall and its belfry, built after WWI to replace the previous city hall that had
 been destroyed by the 1916 fire in the Rihour Palace. The 104-meter-high belfry is listed as
 a UNESCO World Heritage Site along with a number of other belfries that represent
 "freedom of the cities of the North". The observation deck close to the top was open for
 viewing. We cut ourselves some slack and opted for the stairs (109 steps)/elevator option to
 get to the viewing platform, and stairs-only for the descent (at right).

One of the views from the city hall belfry. At left is the Porte de Paris, 
built from 1686 to 1694 as a triumphal arch to glorify Louis XIV and
his annexation of Lille to France in 1667. It was restored and a 
city-facing facade added in the 19th century.

The Maison Coilliot is Lille's finest example of Art Nouveau, and
was designed by Hector Guimard, famous for his work on the Paris
Metro. While we were photographing the exterior (upper left), the
current proprietor (upper right) of the optical shop on the ground
floor invited us in to see the artistic touches inside. Because the 
building was always intended to house businesses, the areas of interest
inside were on the ground floor and not on the upper floors.
Lower left, the entryway. Lower right, a mosaic in the main optical showroom.

Lille is proud of its reputation as a center of art and culture. At left, "Romy" is public art
installed on the plaza outside the Lille Flandres train station. Besides being evocative of a
traveler welcoming other travelers to Lille, she also functions pretty well as a bench.
 At right, part of the "Flower Power" exhibit during Lille's year as the European Capitol of
 Culture in 2004.

The cloudy weather made us lazy during the afternoon of the 30th, so we embraced our inner sluggards and simply relaxed around the apartment. We joined Jeannie and Jonathan that evening for a delicious dinner aboard Aleau, bid them "adieu" with wishes to see them again soon, and prepared for our departure from Lille.

We returned to Toul on July 1 and are now in the throes of prepping for the visit from the boat broker. We're fortunate in that we've never been pack rats, so we don't have a lot of things to get rid of. We mostly just need to do some general cleaning and a bit of straightening to make sure that countertops and engine rooms, etc., etc., are neatly organized and devoid of any unnecessary "stuff". We'll be taking some time to celebrate our wedding anniversary on July 7--which will also be the 50th anniversary of meeting each other.

Cooking in France

No, this is not a discussion of French cuisine. Rather, it is a statement of what it feels like to be in the midst of a significant heat wave in France. We are now experiencing the second heat wave of the season and it's only June. The heat wave in May was uncomfortable, but the worst of it lasted just a few days. Here in northeast France, we are in the first stages of what is predicted to be a long-term event. When all is said and done, it is predicted that we will have nearly 2 weeks with daytime highs in the 90's (Fahrenheit), and mostly mid-to-upper 90's at that. Most of France is affected, as are Spain, Italy, Portugal, and other countries.

This is a screenshot of the Weather Channel forecast from today 
through Wednesday, June 24.

We arrived back in Toul yesterday afternoon, June 18. The 3 days to travel from Lagarde were not particularly eventful. We stayed Monday night (June 15) on the town quay of Einville-au-Jard, the former site of a ducal residence of the House of Lorraine (demolished in the early 19th century), and the current site of a variety of industries, including salt production. On June 16 we cruised slightly longer than normal (for us) in order to get to Nancy so that we could have Wednesday as a full day in the city. We find Nancy to be a beautiful town, but more than that, one of their movie theaters was showing "Disclosure Day" in Version Originale (English language soundtrack with French subtitles) and we always like to take advantage of English-language movies when we can.

Pretty typical for audience sizes we've encountered at
afternoon matinees. Ultimately, there were a total of 8
 of us that watched the movie.

Days are long this time of year in northern France. This is the light level
in Stanislas Square at around 8 p.m.

On the day we arrived in Nancy, toward the end of what had been an enjoyable cruise on the Marne au Rhin Est Canal, we saw a disquieting announcement from the vnf.  Apparently, the rains of the previous week had not done much to replenish the canals, because the guaranteed depth of a large section of the Marne au Rhin Ouest Canal--which would be our route out of Toul on the way to the Netherlands--was being reduced to 1.4 meters. CARIB's water draft is 1.1 meters, so the water depth was becoming uncomfortably "skinny." We spent much of our time in Nancy discussing possible cruising scenarios. We had already decided to spend at least the next few days in Toul due to the dangers of trying to cruise in the extreme heat. Of course, the longer we weren't cruising and the hotter it remained, the more likely it was that canal water levels would continue to drop. 

We had a nice cruise out of Nancy and up the Moselle River on our return to Toul. With the heat continuing to build, we were happy to be on a river for most of the day and able to put our bimini up for shade. When we got to T.S.N.I. Marine in Toul we encountered some barging acquaintances that we'd last seen in Port Royal in Auxonne in Spring 2025 and had an enjoyable "catch-up" session aboard CARIB. But then, the aquatic dominoes started to fall.

A vnf advisory last evening announced the closure of the most southern part of the Meuse Canal beginning at 6 p.m. today, a section of waterway entirely too close to the Marne au Rhin Ouest Canal for comfort. A second "domino" fell only a couple of hours ago, with a vnf advisory closing navigation on a large portion of the Marne au Rhin Ouest Canal beginning next Monday (June 22) and continuing until at least July 31. So much for our powers of prognostication in thinking that it would be unlikely for canals to close this early in the summer.

We now find ourselves in a position similar to where we were last August, with routes to the north and west blocked. A southern route down the Vosges Canal remains open, but cruising that way wouldn't gain us anything. At least we have a place to stay on the boat while we wait out the heat and try to figure out our next steps.

Filling Some Gaps

There's a certain ease that accompanies the cruising experience when the route is not completely new and unfamiliar. Such was the case with us as we left Saverne on June 8 and began retracing our route along the Marne au Rhin Est Canal to return to Nancy and Toul. Having already been down the waterway, we were now acquainted with how the locks worked and with mooring sites along the way. We were also aware of sightseeing possibilities that we'd bypassed on our way to Saverne due to the cruising schedule that we'd kept. Because the lock closures on the Moselle River would keep us on the Marne au Rhin Est for at least another 10 days, we could cruise at a more relaxed pace and have the time--and energy--to fill some of those gaps in our sightseeing experiences.

We made an early start from Saverne on June 8, casting off from the port before 8 a.m. We had seen how boat traffic could back up at the first lock out of Saverne heading west and wanted no part of that if at all possible. We assumed that those people at the Saverne Port who had hired rental boats were inclined to sleep in a bit on their holidays, and we were gratified to find that we had no competition for passing through Lock 30/31 at the early hour. Rain was forecast to arrive in the area by mid-afternoon, but the weather was perfect as we made our way through 9 locks, mooring at Lutzelbourg by lunchtime. 

A beautiful morning for a cruise.

We'd stopped in Lutzelbourg on our way east, but this time we intended to fill a gap in our explorations. On this stop, while the good weather still held, we were determined to visit the Chateau of Lutzelbourg. It had presented itself as an intriguing view from the canal, but we didn't previously have time to visit it. 

The original castle of the 10th and 11th centuries was part of the territory of an abbey that operated under the auspices of the bishopric of Metz. It was taken over in the early 12th century by a son of the powerful Count of Montbeliard.  This son then took the name Count Peter of Lutzelbourg and expanded and reinforced the castle. In subsequent centuries the ownership of the castle passed to other families, sometimes with co-ownership amongst lords. It was destroyed in 1523 in order to remove it as a hideout for Franz of Sikengen and his followers, who were creating mischief in the area. The castle came close to complete demolition in the 1840s, as the owners of that era wanted to sell the materials from the ruin to companies that were building a railway line in the area. It was, instead, sold to a man who preserved the site. It ultimately passed to ownership of the municipality of Lutzelbourg in the 1970's.

The castle ruins are reachable by car, but walking the "car route" would have
added quite a bit of distance. For us, a shorter, less improved, and steeper
path up the side of the promontory was the best option.

Out of the woods and ready to enter the site. The square tower of the 12th century keep is to the far
right. Tourist access is enhanced by a modern walkway that spans the old moat.

A drawbridge probably existed to allow passage across the moat during the castle's heyday.

The views of Lutzelbourg and the Marne au Rhin Est canal were
 fabulous from over 300 meters up. 

Additional buildings within the main castle grounds, including a second keep (at right).

The outer defenses consisted of both natural rock and added stone walls. It
looked formidable, but obviously wasn't formidable enough to prevent the
castle's destruction in 1523.

Looking through a portal toward the chapel ruins and a neo-Gothic
residence built around 1900 by a former owner of the site.

Exploring old ruins is one of our favorite activities.

After we returned to CARIB it began to rain, and continued to be wet overnight. It was still a bit damp on Tuesday, June 9, as we left Lutzelbourg for our short cruise to the basin at the foot of the Saint Louis-Arzviller Inclined Plane. The basin was a lovely place to moor a barge--lots of bollards to connect to, quiet and parklike, and with a great view of the inclined plane. We would have had plenty of time to ascend the inclined plane and continue with our cruise, but staying for the day and overnight in the basin allowed us to fill another "gap."

When the inclined plane opened in 1969, the 3.8 kilometer, 17-lock section of the Marne au Rhin Est canal that it replaced was no longer needed and was shut down to navigation. Now called The Valley of the Lock Keepers, the old canal section has been developed as a greenway for hikers, cyclists, and climbers. It can also be accessed by a tourist train that departs from the inclined plane. Walking along the route was something we had wanted to do and by mooring in the basin of the inclined plane, a short walk down the canal towpath was all it took to get us to lock 17 at the lower entry point to La Valleé des Eclusiers.

Cruising by the lower entrance to the old section of the canal, with the closed gates of 
Lock 17 keeping everyone out.

 

At left, a portion of the walkway is installed as a raised platform in the old canal bed.
At right, the paved walking/biking path is the usual route to travel along the abandoned canal. 

Most of the old lock houses were retained. Some are occupied by artists, some 
seem to be vacant. At right, the cliffs behind parts of the canal looked like promising
areas for rock climbers.

At lock 8, three little creatures dream of being mountain goats.

I stopped to look at a piece of art constructed from the detritus
of the old lock materials. Not a bad representation of a snail.

Lon got tired of the path along the canal and led us through a little-used short-cut to
 try to reach the inclined plane building more quickly. After a muddy, weedy path; a tunnel;
 and a set of very steep stairs up to the tow path leading to the inclined plane, we encountered a
gate locked for security reasons. At least we were able to find a fairly decent path that
 returned us to a main road leading back to the lower canal towpath and CARIB.

That kind of exertion was deserving of a glass of wine on the back deck.

It was further deserving of a night away from 
cooking, with dinner at a nice local restaurant.

We did another earlier-than-usual-for-us departure on June 10 from our mooring spot in the inclined plane basin so that we could reposition to the entry waiting quay for the inclined plane. A mechanical problem with the inclined plane delayed our lift for 30 minutes, but we still managed to be in the bucket and heading up by 9 a.m.

On our way up.

After the inclined plane we had to cruise through the short and long tunnels and again moored at the harbor in Niderviller. This time we went to a different quay so that we wouldn't be locked within the secured vnf compound at the site. We decided to stay in Niderviller for 2 nights and make this a "two gap" stop. First, we spent time that Wednesday afternoon walking into the town of Niderviller to see what we'd missed previously. It was not a visually exciting little town, but did have a claim to fame for the ceramics that it manufactured beginning in 1735. 

This little Moulin Rouge proclaims Niderviller as "The Little Paris."
That might have been a bit of an overstatement.

Former ovens of the ceramics factory adjacent to one of the restored factory buildings,
now housing a catering company.

This example of Niderviller porcelain was in the Sarrebourg
museum. The delicacy and detail of these porcelain flowers
were absolutely amazing.

The Niderviller ceramics company that currently exists
focuses on roof tiles, bricks, and accessories.

The bell tower of the Niderviller church was built in 1762, by the
then-owner of the ceramics factory, in the style of the factory buildings.
Thus, it has a unique appearance in the region.

On Thursday, June 11, we ventured out on the bicycles to the nearby town of Sarrebourg to fill the second touristic gap of the Niderviller stop. One bicycle had electric assist, the other did not, but we were hoping that the 7 kilometers (one way) that needed to be covered would not be too painful. Sarrebourg shows up as a field trip on all of the local hotel boat itineraries because of the presence of a famous stained-glass window designed by Marc Chagall.

In the heart of Sarrebourg sits the Cordeliers chapel, the last remaining part of a 13th century chapel that existed in a Cordeliers convent. With most of the building in ruins, in 1970 it was decided to preserve and restore only the choir portion of the chapel. By separating the remainder of the building from the chapel choir, a giant opening was left in the wall that once connected to the chapel nave. The Mayor of Sarrebourg at that time, a former French prime minister, contracted with artist Marc Chagall to design a stained-glass window to fill the gap. "La Paix" (Peace) was the result. It took from 1974-1976 for the master glassmakers at the Simon workshop in Reims to complete the work.

An exterior view of the chapel. The window is at the end of the building. At least the chapel
survived its use as a stable after the French Revolution.

The window as seen from inside the chapel. It is 12 meters high and 7.5 meters wide, the
largest stained-glass work created by Marc Chagall. Last year we saw some of his
stained-glass work in the Cathedral of Metz and thought that was pretty amazing.
This took it to another level.

A closer view of the window that contains numerous
Biblical references.

At left, Jesus on Palm Sunday. At right, Adam and Eve in the Tree of Life.

The Marc Chagall theme was carried into the Museum of the Sarrebourg Region. There, a tapestry by artist Yvette Cauquil-Prince can be found that is based on another Marc Chagall stained-glass.

Done in thread and also absolutely amazing.

Sarrebourg is an old settlement dating back to Roman times. On our way out of town, we passed by remnants of the 13th century ramparts of Sarrebourg.

Not much remains of what was an extensive system of walls and towers. Probably not
surprising given the subsequent battles in this area over the centuries. It's probably more
surprising that anything remains.

The cycling was not as easy as we'd hoped. Lon was nice enough to volunteer to take the unpowered bicycle, but the gearing and seat height, etc., etc. was not designed for a route with any hills at all, no matter how moderate. The Dutch bike shop where we purchased the bicycles in 2022 has not responded to Lon's inquiry about parts availability, so a phone call may be attempted. We'll also check out bicycle shops when we get back to Toul. For now, it's either no bike touring or only flat routes. The working bicycle can still be used for grocery transport.

Today is a rest day (sort of, except for the blog and some laundry) for us in the village of Lagarde. On Friday, June 12, we cruised from Niderviller to a mooring at the lower end of the very deep Rechicourt lock. It was a peaceful mooring after a miserable weather day. It was so cold and windy, and occasionally wet, that we drove from inside for the last 2 hours of a 6-hour cruising day. Yesterday was much better, and it was a lovely cruise from the Rechicourt lock to a new-to-us mooring at the port (and hire boat base) in Lagarde. We drove through the town a few weeks ago on our road trip and it seemed like it would be a pleasant place to stop. In any case, the adjacent restaurant was a good place to have dinner last evening.

We're now about 3 cruising days from Nancy. At the moment, there are no obvious gaps to be filled in the stretch that awaits us.