Lazy Days

It's been a pretty quiet period for us in the time since the last blog posting. We had good intentions for biking to a number of villages in the vicinity, but the weather turned very hot, which stripped us of most of our inclinations for exerting ourselves to go sightseeing. Lon managed some painting repair work, but the bulk of our days--at least during the midday hours--was spent inside the boat. It was simply too warm outside to do much else.

We did manage to do one day trip to the town of Clamecy, on the Canal du Nivernais about 44 kilometers (25 miles) to the south of Auxerre. We did this on Saturday, August 19, as that was the only day where the daytime high was not forecast to exceed 90 degrees Fahrenheit. As it was outside of our biking range, we took the train down in the morning and returned via bus in the late afternoon. Located at the confluence of the Yonne and Beuvron rivers, it is another Burgundian "medieval village", of which there are many. The medieval center of Clamecy has been classified as a protected sector by the French government and has some lovely buildings from that era.

Timbers-R-Us: A stroll through the historic center of Clamecy revealed some
lovely streetscapes.

Clamecy as seen from across the Beuvron River.

The castle (circa 1700) in Parc Vauvert.

The collegiate church of Saint-Martin, built from
the end of the 12th century through to the 16th.

Saturday was market day, and the covered market
was buzzing with activity. The produce looked really good;
I wished we'd been in a position to actually shop.

Clamecy is a stop on the Nivernais Canal, and has a very nice Halte Nautique for 
passing boaters. 

A flowered bridge over the Beuvron River.

Lunch was ham and cheese sandwiches from a local 
bakery as we sat at the Halte Nautique.

Clamecy was once the site of mills for wood, woolens, and flour; tanneries; and boot and shoe manufacturers. It was also known for trading of wine, cattle, wood, and charcoal. For over 400 years it enjoyed great prosperity as a center of the "Flottage du bois", whereby huge quantities of wood from the Morvan forests were processed and floated down the river system to feed the insatiable appetite of Paris for wood to heat its homes. 

During the "great flood", the logs at 22 ports were thrown into
the river at the same time, and ended up in Clamecy for
further processing--sorting and stacking into rafts that would
then be floated to Paris.

The Clamecy Museum had an exhibit on the 
"Flottage du bois". As Paris transitioned to the 
use of coal for heating, the "wood floating" industry
declined. The last free log float took place in 1923.

Although we were hiding out from the heat during most days, we were not without social outlets. For about a week, Canadians Jill and David--and a rotating guest list--were rafted to the outside of us on their barge Thetis. We shared docktails more than once with them and with fellow Floridians David and Betty.

Thetis left Auxerre on Friday, August 18, to head up the 
Nivernais Canal.

We shared more than one dinner out with Betty and David. This
particular outing was for crepes. They are getting their motor sailor
ready for sale after years of incredible cruising adventures in
oceans, canals, and rivers. As their residence is Melbourne, FL,
we have hopes for a winter reunion with them back in the States.

Because we haven't been cruising I no longer have any excuse for not getting my morning exercise walking done. Some days the lingering over coffee is just too attractive, but I have managed to get out a few times, and with the heat, the earlier the better. On one of my walks I passed the Palais de Justice (courthouse). It was a nice enough building . . . 

 . . . but what really intrigued me was the sign that I saw painted on one corner adjacent to the parking area.

"Forbidden to urinate under pain of fine"

In a country where it has sometimes seemed (in fairness, not so much these days) that public urination is a spectator sport, the appearance of the wall made me wonder if the threat was all that effective.

After heavy thunderstorms on Thursday and Friday, today was absolutely glorious, wonderful weather for the 6th annual "Rues Barrees Festival d'Auxerre" (closed streets festival). Over 3 days, 20 artistic companies take to the streets of Auxerre to "strut their stuff"--acrobats, mimes, dancers, and others. Sidewalk sales were taking place at the same time, so the center of town was a lively place to be. 

We weren't able to spend a lot of time at the festival, but we were there to see this wandering
troupe of ballerinas who had escaped from the conservatory. Their performance was
highly interactive with the audience and very funny.

We are heading out tomorrow to a hotel at Charles de Gaulle Airport in preparation for a Monday morning flight to Oslo, Norway. We've not been to Norway before and are looking forward to seeing a bit of the country from which both of us have ancestors. Besides just general sightseeing, we have a stop planned in the town of Mo i Rana and a drive to the farm that was the home of one of my great-grandmothers in the 1800's. We'll be doing a fair amount of moving around by train and ferry, so I don't expect that I'll be posting anything here until after our return to Auxerre on September 7.

Roads Less Traveled

Having an extended period in Auxonne has given us the opportunity to investigate some of the surrounding area. For the moment, our explorations have been limited to places that are within a comfortable biking distance of the boat. (With the e-bikes the pedaling is easy; the comfort factor relates to how long we can tolerate the seats.)  The furthest we've gone to this point is about 20 km (12 miles) one way. 

Our first outing after getting the electrical issues straightened out was on Wednesday, August 9, to the village of Saint-Bris le Vineux. The route out of Auxerre took us southeast on a bike route along the eastern shore (right bank) of the Nivernais Canal/Yonne River to the town of Augy, where we turned away from the water and had a relatively long uphill climb on a major road (although not dangerously busy) before arriving at Saint-Bris le Vineux. 

Being in the Chablis region, the area around Saint-Bris
 le Vineux has lots of vineyards.

The town's name is derived from Saint Prix, a Christian martyr of the 3rd century, who was beheaded in the town of Puisaye. A Christian disciple of Saint Prix fled with Saint Prix's head to what is now known as Saint-Bris, where he, too, was martyred and later became known as Saint Cot. Saint Germain, the first bishop of Auxerre in the early 5th century, discovered their burial place and established the first church on the site. During the French Revolution (and its secularization of many things religious) the town was renamed Bris-le-Vineux because of the town's significant involvement in the wine industry. In the early 1900's "Saint" was again appended to the name.

The village has a charming, medieval vibe, with narrow winding streets, timbered houses, multiple wine makers, and the stunning Saint-Prix Saint-Cot Church. On the day we were there it was very quiet. Whether that is typical for the village in mid-week, or due to residents being away on their August "vacances", we're not sure. It was still a lovely place to spend an hour or two. When we went through the church I had a sense of "deja vu", for good reason as it turned out. When we were at the DBA barge rally in 2017, one of the field trips was to a Chablis vineyard, followed by a wine cave tour (with wine tasting) and church visit in a small village near Auxerre. Turns out the village was Saint-Bris-le-Vineux. Usually my memory for place names is better--I am blaming information overload for the lapse!

The current church building dates from the 12th through
the 16th centuries.

A portion of the west facade of the church and
its neighborhood.

The back of the church and the adjoining Renaissance portal.

To the left, a portion of the church interior. To the right, the
pride of the church, an immense wall painting from 1500 of the
 "Tree of Jesse", a representation of the genealogy
of Jesus going back to Jesse, father of King David.

The 15th century baptismal font and its copper
cover. On the wall, a portion of a 15th century
altar piece in wood.

The enclosed bones are said to be authenticated relics of Saints
Prix and Cot. The reliquary is from the late 1800's, the original
containers having been seized during the Revolution and likely
melted down.

The Chapel of Saint Cot from the 14th century. The Merovingian-era
sarcophagus to the right, dated to the 5th or 6th century, was said to
 have held the relics of Saint Cot. In former times, mothers would
come to lay their sick children on the sarcophagus and pray
that the saint would heal them.

Lots of opportunities for wine tasting in town.

A beautifully-restored timbered house, and one that
is being rebuilt after having been stripped down
 to the timbers and stone.

The facades of many of the old village houses had inlaid stone
decorations.

So much to see and only a 10 km (6 mile) cycle ride from Auxerre!

On Friday, August 11, we paid a visit to the medieval village of Cravant, located about 12 miles up the Nivernais Canal from Auxerre. We had originally hoped to visit Cravant when we were cruising the Nivernais in late July, but the electrical issues forced us to turn around before we could get there. Less than an hour on bike trails that followed the canal were a great way to try to recover some of what we'd missed.

The sunflowers are depressed, their heads drooping because they've
lost their yellow color and they know that the end of summer
is rapidly approaching.

The village of Cravant was economically powerful during the Middle Ages, thanks to its location at the confluence of the Cure and Yonne Rivers, its port, and its bridge. On July 31, 1423, it was the site of The Battle of Cravant, one of the battles of the Hundred Years War. English and Burgundian forces fought the French and their Scottish allies outside the town gates. It didn't end well for the French-Scots--they lost about 4500 men in the battle.

Commemorating the Battle of Cravant.

The church of Saint-Pierre and Saint-Paul (mostly 16th century,
with some traces going back to the 13th).

The 14th century Belfry/Watchtower, which was part
of the medieval town fortifications.

To the left, an interesting old house. On the right, part of our
view during lunch at the cafe "O Jouvence".

Anyone interested in buying a castle keep? The 13th century Cravant "donjon" is for sale. Location,
location, location: it's next to a (somewhat) more modern historical wash house.

We stayed close to "home" on Saturday and finally took the tour of the crypt in the Saint-Germain Abbey church. If this were Paris, we would probably have had to book the tour in advance to guarantee a spot. This being Auxerre, despite all the wonderful things to see, there really isn't a huge tourist presence other than those on rental boats who stop for a night or two. So, we had the tour guide on the English-language tour all to ourselves.

The abbey dates back to the 5th century and was a former Benedictine monastery dedicated to its founder, Saint Germain of Auxerre. However, the oldest of the preserved buildings is the Carolingian crypt that dates back to the 9th century and was built around the burial site of Saint Germain. What is unique about the crypt are the well-preserved frescoes from the mid-800's that had been covered up with plaster in the 17th century and were only rediscovered in the early 1900's. The frescoes are the oldest surviving large-scale paintings of this type in France. The crypt also serves as a necropolis for the men who served as bishops in Auxerre from the 5th to the 9th centuries, after which the St. Etienne cathedral began to be used for that purpose.

Some of the frescoes. At the upper right is a fresco that depicts
the stoning of Stephen (from Book of Acts in the New Testament). 

On the left, the view toward the chapel from the perspective of
the tomb of Saint Germain. On the right, the view toward the 
tomb of Saint Germain from the perspective of the chapel. The 
sarcophagus is said to be the "original", but the body of Saint
Germain was removed from the church and burned during
 a desecration of the church by Huguenots in the late 1500's.

Three tombs of bishops in a "chapel"
 adjacent to the tomb of Saint Germain.
The two sarcophagi on the left are
5th century; the ossuary on the right 
is 9th century.

On Sunday, August 13, we realized that we'd been south and east and north of Auxerre on our area explorations, but had never gone to the west of Auxerre proper. It's not as though we saw any indication of "must see" sights, but simply wanted to see what was there. 

Gravel roads and farm fields. 

A lovely view of the village of Chevannes in the distance.

The church in Chevannes was very attractive outside, but was
closed to visitors. The nearby patisserie was open, and we enjoyed
some delicious pastries during a quick break from biking.

Two villages, two castles: The Chateau de
Villefargeau (top), currently an event venue,
 and the 16th C Chateau Ribourdin in Chevannes
 (bottom), a B&B with luxury guest rooms.

Isn't there a law against fall colors showing up in August?

Hmmmmm . . . 

We have some additional bike rides planned over the next couple of weeks, and perhaps a train ride or two to reach some towns that sound interesting, but are a little further afield. We've met some lovely boaters here at the port, so the social side of our summer continues to be pretty nice.

Family Frolics

Good news! We received the correct replacement batteries on Monday, August 7, and the port electrician was back from vacation and on our boat the next day. Even better, the electrical issues turned out not to be especially serious: a stuck relay switch on the bow thruster controller was corrected by cleaning and remounting the relay, and rewiring the charge splitter and tightening the battery cut-off switches dealt with the alternator problem. After having to purchase two ridiculously expensive Exide batteries, we were glad to "escape" with only three hours of electrician time and a few replacement fuses as additional expenses.

During our wait for repairs in the first week of August, the weather continued to be very unlike a typical August. August 1st was rather rainy, but we did manage to eke out "Auxerre Walking Tour, Part 3" during one of the breaks in the rain.

A statue of poetess Marie-Noel, well-known in France,
and born in Auxerre in 1883. 

The interior of Saint-Eusebe church. The current constructions
are from the 12th to the 16th centuries. The first church
on the site in the 7th century, part of a monastery dedicated
 to Saint-Eusebius, was outside of the 3rd century Roman
 town walls, and was ultimately abandoned by the monks because
it was attacked so often. It was finally enclosed by a second
town wall built in the late 12th century.

Lon is an exemplary tour guide.

The off-again, on-again rain--and constant wind--continued into the morning and mid-afternoon of Wednesday, August 2, when we welcomed Lon's oldest brother Nick, Nick's wife Wendy, and Lon's youngest sister Sarah to Auxerre. We were very grateful that our port neighbor Robert was kind enough to perform "taxi service" with his vehicle to get our guests from the train station to the boat. In nice weather the walk from the train station is an easy 10-15 minutes, but it would have been a different story in the "sideways rain" that was falling at the time their train from Paris arrived in Auxerre. 

Miracle of miracles, the rain stopped, and the sun came out soon after our guests arrived on the boat. Although it was still incredibly windy, we were able to cross the river for a stroll to introduce them to Auxerre. As Sarah was only going to be with us for two nights, and Nick & Wendy for three, we had hoped to be able to take the boat out on a river cruise on Thursday, August 3. Unfortunately, the weather did not cooperate. Thursday was gray, showery at times, and extremely windy. Our fallback was further exploration of Auxerre and a lovely dinner that night at an Italian restaurant.

Not letting the weather get us down: L to R (back): Wendy, Pat, 
Lon, Nick. Front: Sarah.

Lon, Wendy, Nick, and Sarah listen to an organist rehearsing
in the Saint-Etienne Cathedral. 

Wendy, Sarah, Lon and Nick on a wet quay at the first lock of
the Nivernais Canal.

The brothers bid "adieu" to their sister at the train station
when she left us on Friday morning to make her way to London. 

The weather on Friday started out cool and foggy, and the early forecast did not give us much hope for a weather day suitable for boating. Lon and I were wracking our brains to try to come up with a good alternate way to spend the day, when the skies began to clear, and the winds stayed calm. Around 11 a.m. we decided that the weather window was good enough to attempt a cruise. We were away from the dock within 30 or 40 minutes and headed north on the Yonne.

We made it to the 2nd lock by the time the lunch hour rolled around at noon. We were allowed to tie
up inside the lock, then the eclusier dropped the water level and went to lunch while we
enjoyed sandwiches and chips on the aft deck.

Wendy and Nick enjoying the sun near the
bow of the boat. I do not know the spf level
of Nick's jacket/head covering, but as a fashion
statement it was top notch.

After passing through the 3rd lock, we turned the boat around and headed back to Auxerre. The
town looks so much better in sunshine!

All told, we had about a 4-hour outing, including lunch. While it would have been nice to have cruised further, we were glad we returned when we did. About an hour after mooring, while we were enjoying our after-cruise Crémant on the back deck, an intense storm cell moved over Auxerre. As we escaped to the inside of the boat, the rain poured down and high winds created waves on the river. Within less than an hour it was all over and we were left with a lovely, calm evening for a farewell dinner with Nick and Wendy at a local creperie.

Wendy's dessert looked delicious.

Lon makes a friend of the creperie owner's dog.

We walked through Auxerre's night market on our way
to and from dinner.

It was a beautiful twilight and the river was like glass.

After Nick and Wendy left us on Saturday morning to head up to Charles DeGaulle Airport for a Sunday return to the U.S., we mostly just took it easy. The wind returned, and although it wasn't rainy, the cloud cover made it a bit cool and we were happy to mostly hang out on the boat at the port. We went to dinner on Saturday night with friends Jonathan and Jeannie (of the barge Aleau), and after a "movie night" on their boat on Sunday, we bid them farewell on Monday as they left Auxerre and headed north on the Yonne to continue their cruising season before settling into Port Arsenal in Paris in October. We hope to be able to see them in Paris before we return to Florida in early October.