Free at Last

On Monday, June 24, the Pont-canal at Briare re-opened to boat traffic. This had closed due to high water just prior to the navigation stop in our section of the Briare Canal, so we were hoping that the rest of the canal would be cleared for cruising that same day. Unfortunately that turned out not to be the case, so we resigned ourselves to another day moored in Dammarie and decided upon some projects that we could do to fill our Tuesday. Lon had just started scrubbing the decks on Tuesday morning when the notice came out from the vnf that the navigation stop on the Canal de Briare had been lifted with immediate effect.  Cleaning stopped and within 30 minutes we were on our way.

Dammarie may have been a quiet place, and under normal circumstances not a mooring that we would have chosen for a several-day stay, but we were able to make the best of it. We still had to work around some pockets of rain on the previous Saturday, but by late afternoon it was pretty much cleared out and the subsequent days were all rain-free. We returned to Chatillon-Coligny by bike, where we met up with Ian and Lisette and went to the small municipal museum, now open because it was the weekend. 

Focused on topics of local interest, the museum had one room dedicated
to Henri Becquerel, born in Chatillon-Coligny and a Nobel-laureate in
 physics for his discovery of natural radiation. The subjects other exhibits
 included French authoress Collette (who had a childhood home in
Chatillon) and prehistoric and Gallo-Roman findings from the region.

Ian and Lisette were kind enough to invite us to stay for a delicious dinner aboard their boat with their guests and, happily satiated, we cycled back to CARIB under dry skies.

Sunday was "field trip" day for us. The canal was still closed to navigation, and the weather was absolutely gorgeous, so an 11-kilometer bike ride to the Chateau de la Bussiere seemed like a perfect way to spend some Sunday hours away from CARIB. 

The chateau was originally built in the 12th century by the local lord, and the village around it became a commercial hub due to its location on the road running between the Loire Valley and Paris. Damaged during an attack by Protestants in 1567, it was restored in the 17th century, with ponds and gardens designed by Louis XIV's chief gardener Le Notre. After a series of owners, the chateau has been in the Chasseval family for about 200 years and was opened to visitors in 1962. The interior is a blend of family furniture and fishing museum. Interior photos were not permitted, so sadly, there is no visual documentation of the collection of fishing poles or the preserved coelacanth.

The chateau is strikingly situated in a pond.

The chateau gardens were enormous, and encompassed both
flowers, vegetables and an orchard.

The circular building was originally a watchtower.
The chateau then gained the right to have the "dovecoat"
(a place to house pigeons) for the region, and the watchtower
started doing double-duty. There were about 1450 pigeon
 holes (see lower photo) in this dovecoat, which meant housing
 for about 2900 pigeons. Pity the poor servant whose job
it was to clean the dovecoat.

On our bike route we passed over evidence of flooding
of the Loing River. We also noted lots of water standing in the 
rows between crops in the agricultural fields. 

I may have previously joked about "my life in groceries," but the fact of the matter is that it is very useful to be able to visit a grocery store every 3 or 4 days. I had last shopped for food the day before we left Montargis, so we were running low on some things. With no canal opening yet announced, Monday morning became the time to hitch up the cart to my bike and for us to head to the closest supermarket, which meant yet another trip to Chatillon-Coligny. That took care of most of Monday morning, but we were still looking for a way to fill our afternoon,

We had originally thought that when we left the mooring in Dammarie we would cruise no further than the 4 kilometers to Rogny and spend a night there to explore the part of town we hadn't seen in our previous bike excursion. However, given the unexpected time in Dammarie, it seemed to make more sense to cycle to Rogny from Dammarie for a Monday afternoon of sightseeing, and then we could just "cruise on through" when the canal finally re-opened. After the short 15-minute ride we parked the bikes at the port and walked into town and up the hill toward the church. It quickly became evident that aside from a few businesses right at the canal's edge, most commerce in Rogny was shuttered.

Upper: Street leading from the port.
Lower: View across the canal to the port, and the church on higher ground.

When we got to the upper town, we were anticipating that Rogny was likely to be one of those towns where the church was probably not left open for visitors.

Eglise Saint Loup in Rogny has undergone several
transformations over the years, most notably in 1740.
Of the 12th century church, the bell tower, portal, and span
supporting the bell tower remain. It was nearly dismantled
after the Revolution, but somehow survived its
"Cult of Reason" phase to again become a place of Christian worship.  

As we were reading an informational sign in the vicinity of the church, Lon called my attention to an elderly lady who seemed to be beckoning to us from the window of a nearby house. When I went to talk to her, it turned out that she was the keeper of the church key and the informational placards on the church and its features.

Left: The local "guide" was so friendly and happy to talk. It seems she's
lived in the town her whole life, and had childhood remembrances of 
the American army coming through in 1944. 
Right: At least my French was good enough to get us the key and for us to
find most of the things that she attempted to tell me about.

Left: A Romanesque portal with design unusual for this region of France.
Top Right: The supports of the 12th century tower as viewed from the
high altar. Bottom right: View from the back of the church.
The informational document for the church said that "There is nothing
artistic about this church," but that interest could be found in the oldest parts.
 They were right about the interest, and we enjoyed our time there.

After our return to CARIB, it was our turn to host Ian and Lisette for docktails, all of us hoping that we would soon be able to get our respective boats underway.

Our 10 a.m. departure on Tuesday morning meant that we had a chance of getting through Rogny and the 6 "up" locks that follow in quick succession prior to the noon-1 p.m. lunch hour. 

This time we got to see the staircase locks in Rogny from the water. Although impressive feats
 of engineering at the time they were created in the early 1600's, they were always the source of
 a bottleneck in canal traffic. The locks could only handle one boat at a time; passing through
all seven a process that could take hours. Boat traffic would back up at each end of the lock. Some modernization was done in the early 1800's, but 6 new locks of Freycinet gauge were built later.
 In addition to having standard interior dimensions, the new locks were built with "pounds"
 between them on the canal, which allowed boats to pass each other to-and-from each lock. Thus, multiple boats could be worked through the set of locks simultaneously. The staircase locks were
 closed for good in 1887. The entrance to the first of the "new" locks is at right. They were quite
 deep, so we were happy to have an eclusier help us at each lock by grabbing a line from me--I
 never could have got a line on a bollard to hold us steady otherwise.

The main question of the day was how far to go? We were through the last "up" locks on the Briare Canal, and thus at the summit of the canal, by noon. Six locks going down and a few more kilometers would have had us in Ouzouer, the next town with a good mooring, but the weather made us "cry uncle" and stop for the day. Rain wasn't the problem this time--summer had finally decided to make an appearance and the very warm temperatures made stopping a much more appealing proposition than pressing ahead in the heat.

We were moored for the day by Lake Gazonne, one of the lakes,
ponds, and reservoirs that supply water to the Canal de Briare.

Temperatures in the high 80's were forecast for Wednesday and Thursday as well, which factored into our cruising decisions. Basically, how much did we want to cruise and when? Also entering into the calculations was some advance "scouting" information from Lisette and Ian about the mooring possibilities in the town of Briare (the last town on its namesake canal and gateway to the next canal on the Bourbonnais Route, the Canal lateral a la Loire). Our lakeside mooring was just upstream of the first lock that would start taking us down toward the Loire River. This made it very easy for us to try to "beat the heat" by cruising as early as possible in the day on Wednesday.

We were in Ecluse 12 at 9 a.m. The locks at this stage were in a "chain" and automatic--they did not require an eclusier to be at each lock we went through, and by passing through one lock we triggered the next lock to prepare for our entry.

I'm watching the lines and preparing for our descent. Even this
early in the morning, the shade is entirely welcome.

In the past, we've had problems at locks--with weeds, with lock malfunctions, whatever. This year we have been so pleased in general with the quality of cruising on the Canal du Loing and Canal de Briare: few problems with weed (which could partly be a function of the wet year and higher water levels), well-manicured canals and mooring spots, and towns that offer such great service to boaters. The vnf staff have also been wonderful.

The Wednesday section of canal was no exception. Within an hour-and-a-half of casting off our lines we were at a beautiful halte nautique in the town of Ouzouer-sur-Trésée. Despite the short span of time spent cruising that morning, we were encountering the same hot temperatures as the day before, so again, it was an easy decision to stay moored for the rest of the day. 

The Ouzouer skyline after the last lock and the bridge,
 approaching the halte nautique.

We're getting spoiled--free mooring, power, and water for
two nights.

Ouzuoer used to contain a royal castle surrounded by a fortified wall, but those days are long gone. It experienced a boom with the construction of the Briare Canal in the 17th century and the resultant traffic in barges. Aside from hotel boats and an occasional commercial barge, most of the water traffic these days is pleasure craft. A walk-through of town on the afternoon of the 26th showed us lots of empty storefronts. One bakery and a small (and I mean small) grocery store were hanging in there, but they didn't have lots of company. Still, the town was clean, the residential areas looked nice, and the church of the 12th and 13th centuries is unusual in that much of its construction is still original--it didn't suffer damages in the Hundred Years' War or the Wars of Religion or the Revolution.

Left, the bell tower of the Church of Saint-Martin looms over surrounding houses.
Right, the interior of the church is rather austere, but rare in being so "intact."

This building is a neighbor of the church. It's
timbered, it's old--and it's being lived in. I think
I'd be terrified of an imminent collapse.

This was probably one of the more beautiful timbered houses
in town--and the original carvings were fabulous.

The town is trying. Last year it opened Tréz Café in space formerly occupied by the town library. It offers drinks and light meals, and Lon and I enjoyed a Wednesday lunch there. 

The predicted temperature for Thursday was also high 80's, but our main reason for deciding to stay an extra day in Ouzouer was the anticipated difficulty in finding appropriate mooring in Briare. Even if a space could be found for us to moor--which was questionable--it was more expensive than just staying where we were. A 30-minute bicycle ride from Ouzouer to Briare could deal with our sightseeing wants. Therrfore, we set off before 9 a.m. on Thursday while it was still relatively cool. We had asphalt bike path bordering the canal all the way to the Old Port near the center of town.

As in much of France, the "Romans were roamin' . . ." in the vicinity of Briare; however, the town really came into its own with the building of the Canal de Briare in the 17th century. Water transport was the source of Briare's prosperity. In the early days of the canal's existence, navigation was still being done on the Loire River. Shoaling in summer and high waters in winter made it a dangerous thing for small cargo boats to have to cruise the Loire to Briare to off-load their goods onto the big canal barges that would then continue to Paris. When the Canal lateral a la Loire opened in 1838, the only remaining bit of the Loire that had to be navigated was the approximately one mile from the end of the Canal lateral a la Loire at Chatillon sur Loire to the entry to the Canal de Briare at Briare. Much shorter, yes, but still dangerous. 

A project to build an aqueduct that would allow commercial boat traffic to pass over the Loire River was begun in 1890 and completed in 1896. The Pont-canal de Briare was a monumental feat of engineering. A French engineer named Mazoyer is credited with the design of the bridge, and Gustave Eiffel--of Eiffel Tower fame--oversaw the design of the masonry and abutments upon which the iron works rest. Until 2003 the Pont-canal was the largest navigable aqueduct in the world and is one of the two things for which Briare is well-known.

The bridge is 662 meters long and 11 meters wide. The design of the art on the pillars
that flank the entrances is based on the sculptures found on the Pont Alexandre
III in Paris.

Bicycles this day, but we'll be crossing it with CARIB 
on Friday the 28th.

It handles little pleasure boats, big commercial barges, and
everything in between.

Briare's other achievement of note was that it became a center of manufacture of enamels and mosaic tiles in the 19th century. There is a museum in town that discusses the industry and its history, but nowhere is its significance seen more clearly than in the 19th-century Saint-Etienne Church. The church was largely funded by Jean-Felix Bapterosses, who ran the enamel manufactory. After 30 years of discussion, the church was built in 5 years, using the talents of Bapterosses' employees. Sadly, Mr. Bapterosses died before the church was completed in 1895.

Sainte-Etienne Church. The exterior has some mosaics, which can be seen at left, but
the masterworks are in the interior.

The floor was covered with a carpet of mosaics,
with varying and intricate symbolism.

Left: Artisans from Murano in Italy were consulted for some of the work in gold.
Right: A first for us, a list of the WWI dead of the parish done in mosaics.

When we returned to Ouzouer, the halte nautique was starting to fill up with boats. It really got full later, so much so that Ian and Lisette's boat Catharina Elisabeth ended up rafting against us. After several weeks of barely seeing any other cruisers, it was a bit of a shock to see as many as we did today. Then again, July is just around the corner and vacation "high season" will begin in France.

And . . . We're Stopped

We had hoped to depart Dammarie today and do a very short, 4-kilometer, cruise to the town we cycled to yesterday, Rogny-les-Sept-Ecluses. Unfortunately, Mother Nature and the French waterway authorities (vnf) had other ideas. 

When we cycled to Rogny we noticed that the water was flowing full and fast over the spillways. This was no doubt thanks to the sometimes-heavy rain over the last few days.

Lower: water from the canal enters the spillway
Upper: the departing water, definitely more than usual

A vnf employee we spoke to in Rogny told us that the Pont-canal Briare--the aquaduct over the Loire River at the town of Briare that facilitated the joining of the Canal de Briare and Canal lateral a la Loire--had been closed due to high water. This resulted in a navigation stop between the two canals. Although we will ultimately need to pass through the Pont-canal, the closure was not an immediate concern for us because we knew we had several days of cruising ahead of us before getting to that area and it was likely--given the current weather forecasts--that the high-water problem will be resolved within a few days. 

What is a problem for us is that, yesterday afternoon, the vnf imposed an additional navigation stop in two new sections of the Canal de Briare due to flooding from the rains. The section of the canal from Rogny to Dammarie is now closed to navigation as is a section of the canal from Dammarie to the first lock downstream of Chatillon-Coligny. As we are currently moored in the Rogny-Dammarie section we are directly impacted. A vnf employee stopped by our boat yesterday evening to inform us of the closures and tell us that we needed to stay moored where we were until the navigation stop is lifted. (Had we checked our email earlier for waterway advisories we get from the vnf we would have seen the notification there.) We will keep monitoring the situation and hope that the water goes down sooner rather than later, although the heavy rain we received in the overnight hours probably did not help. While we think the mooring here in Dammarie is beautiful and comfortable, the adjacent village doesn't have much going on, and we're in a bit of a grocery store "desert". 

For entertainment yesterday and today, we have been watching participants in the "Race Across
France 2024" ultra cycling event go past us. The 10-day event started on June 20 and finishes on
June 30. Participants can select one of 5 distances--ranging from 200 to 2500 kilometers--to 
complete during that time period. Given the route map, the cyclists that we are seeing are those
attempting to complete 2500 kilometers. No wonder they all looked so fit!

Although it's still raining this Saturday morning, the rain is supposed to move out of here during the afternoon and the next few days promise sunshine and warmer temperatures. Fingers crossed! Even if we can't move the boat immediately, at least we'll be able to go places on our bikes as long as we don't have to worry about getting wet.

In the meantime, all we can do is say, "C'est la vie," and raise a toast to the unpredictability of life and cruising.

Dodging Raindrops

The weather over the past week, ever since our transition to the Canal de Briare and arrival in Montargis on June 14, has been changeable, to say the least. The Weather Channel hourly and daily forecasts, which seemed to be modified every hour, presented an almost unrelenting picture of all-day rains and--at least early on--cool temperatures. Thankfully, the weather didn't always turn out as forecast, but trying to work out when it might be raining has made scheduling sightseeing and cruising somewhat of a challenge. 

The Canal de Briare is the oldest canal in France and the first summit-level canal in Europe (a summit-level canal is an artificial waterway that connects two separate river valleys). King Henri IV had decided that a waterway was needed to connect the Loire and Seine waterways and in 1604 construction was begun. The local lords weren't exactly happy to have their lands taken from them for the project, hence, the assignment of 6,000 soldiers to protect the 12,000 men working on the canal. The king's assassination in 1610 put an initial pause on the construction, and after several other delays, the canal project was finally restarted in 1638 and completed in 1642. Over the centuries of its existence, the canal and its locks have been modified several times. Its 57 kilometers contain 36 locks, starting just north of Montargis and ending at Briare in the south, where it joins the Canal lateral a la Loire.

Montargis, with a population of about 15,000, is a relatively large town for the area. Montargis was ceded to the King of France in the 12th century, after having been the seat of one of the noble French houses, becoming a royal residence in the 14th and 15th centuries. In the early 20th century, Montargis was a center of Chinese expatriate political activity. Like other towns and cities in France and elsewhere that have many bridges and canals, it compares itself to Venice, Italy. This "Venice of the Gatinais" (Gatinais being a province of France) has fashioned its touristic city walk along a route that encompasses a number of its more historically significant bridges and the sights that may be seen along that route. A second walking tour--which we did not do--focuses on the history of the Chinese in Montargis.

The Canal de Briare winding its way 
through "Venetian" Montargis.

On the Friday evening of our arrival in Montargis, the weather was nice enough for us to take a stroll across town (a mere 15 minutes) to the site of the city's port de plaisance. We knew that the port had been undergoing renovations during at least the past couple of years, and it had been difficult to find information on the internet as to whether it was now open for business. We were hoping to find that it was, so that we could leave our current mooring on the commercial quay. What we saw were docks and quays that looked brand-new, but unused; a new port office building containing no furniture; and several boats--about half of which were occupied--filling a length of quay that stretched from the vacant port back toward the Marolle lock on the Briare Canal. A Dutch couple on one of the cruisers gave us the good news/bad news: the bad news was that the port was not yet open and security would roust anyone who tried to moor there; the good news was that mooring was allowed along the quay upstream from the lock and that they--and probably the sailboat adjacent to them--would be leaving on Saturday, which would open up space for us. The price sounded reasonable, and we would have access to power and water.

Soon after the 9 a.m. opening of the locks on Saturday morning we made our way back toward the port de plaisance to, hopefully, verify that boat departures were taking place. The friendly Dutch couple were just leaving the 2nd of the two locks taking them downstream. They saw us and told us that the sailboat was also getting ready to depart. Just to be sure, we continued to the boat quay, confirmed that the couple on the sailboat was about to leave, and hightailed it back to C.A.R.I.B. III to prepared for departure. On the walk back we saw that a hotel boat that had been moored on the commercial quay was making its way to the locks--uh, oh--and just as we were pulling away from our mooring, a tourist sightseeing boat also pulled away from the commercial quay to start cruising in the direction of the locks. Bigger "uh, oh." It seemed as though our "luck" of the day before was holding, and that we would have to wait for the two commercial boats to get through the locks before we could do so.

After an "encounter of the 'we're aground' kind" with some unmarked shoaling under one of the city bridges, we rounded the corner of the canal and were surprised to see the tourist boat tied against one of the canal walls, and a red light showing on the first lock. In the waterway between the two locks we could see the hotel boat, apparently not moving. "Uh, oh" number 3. We tied up on the wall behind the tourist boat and went to talk to their crew. As it turns out, there was a technical problem with the second lock and we all had to wait for the arrival of vnf service. It took about 45 minutes to an hour for the problem to be resolved. In that time, the tourist boat decided they could not wait, so they backed out of the mooring, turned around and headed back the way they'd come. That made it quicker for us, and within 20 minutes we were at our new mooring.

Lower: waiting behind the sightseeing boat
Upper: we're the last boat on the quay beyond the lock,
in a well-maintained, park-like setting.

All's well that ends well, but the time and effort involved to make the mooring change depleted any energy we might have had for sightseeing that day. So, we took it easy around the boat, picked up a few groceries, and in the late afternoon, wandered back to the commercial quay to greet our friends Ian and Lisette, and their guests, who were able to snag the premium quay space that had been vacated by the hotel boat. 

After a wet Sunday morning, we dared to venture out to the Tourist Office, and then strolled around town during the rather cloudy and cool afternoon. It seemed very quiet for a summer Sunday, but the iffy weather probably had something to do with that. Nevertheless, Montargis ticked the boxes of what every historic town should have: a castle, an old church, timbered buildings, and charming water vistas.

The Canal de Briare and one of many city bridges.

Place Victor Hugo

Eglise Sainte Madeleine--built between the 12th
century and the 17th, restored in the 1860's. The interior
had some of the most colorful chapels we have seen in
any French church. Fun fact: it has the only stained glass
windows in France depicting Japanese converts.

A house incorporating a tower that used to be part of the
14th century ramparts.

One of the old city lavoirs, perhaps the inspiration for the
outdoor French laundromats in shopping center parking lots?

Shopping central.

The backside of an old tannery, now housing the Tannery Museum.

The Pecherie District, formerly the area 
where fisherman lived.

One of the canals that gives Montargis its nickname.

And yet another domestic repurposing of a tower from 
the old ramparts.

The remains of the feudal castle loom over the town. Much of
the castle complex was demolished at the beginning of the 19th C.

We had originally thought to leave Montargis on Monday the 16th, but the forecast called for rain most of the day and we also wanted a day to complete some miscellaneous "to do" items. As it turned out, it did rain in the early part of the morning, but--surprise! surprise!--it "unexpectedly" (at least to The Weather Channel) turned sunny and rather warm in the afternoon. The EuroVelo continues to track along the Canal de Briare, and it made for a lovely walk upstream to see what we would be cruising by in the near future.

The Moulin Bardin complex, the mill building at left a 19th C construction on the
site of mills going back to the 1500's. It made for a charming sight along the canal.

The weather forecast wasn't much better for Tuesday, June 18th, but we hoped there might be a window good enough for cruising after early morning thunderstorms. The day turned out better than we could have hoped. We left Montargis at 9 a.m. under still-cloudy skies, but it didn't take long for clearing to start and we had a fabulous 4-hour, 6-lock, 17-kilometer cruise to the village of Montbuoy. 

We are loving this canal. The locks and the landscaping along the canal seem very well-maintained, and there are sufficient mooring spots along the way that are more than adequate for barges.

The variety of the canal, farms and shady woods.

  

A bit of whimsy along the canal.

Providing an escape for any deer or boar that might
fall into the canal.

Even more amazing, many of the towns and villages provide the mooring and electric/water services for no charge. Such was the case with Montbuoy, which would have allowed us to stay on their quay for up to 5 days. We would have loved to have supported some of their (few) local businesses as thanks for the mooring, but the bakery was closed on the morning we would have needed it and the restaurant wasn't open. We did, at least, get some ice cream at the small cafe/bookstore located adjacent to the next lock.

We are in sight of the Church of Notre-Dame and Saint-Blaise.
The oldest part of the church--its tower--is 12th C. Other parts
are newer reconstructions done after the damage sustained in the 
Hundred Years War in the 15th C. The church wasn't open for visits.

A short bike ride away from the village are the last vestiges of the Amphitheatre de Chenevieres, a (probably) 2nd C. Gallo-Roman amphitheater that could seat about 4000 spectators. Named a Historic Monument in 1862, it's situated on the private parkland of a local chateau.  It's a shame that the site no longer seems to be maintained. Photographs online show that it received more TLC in the past.

We were kept behind a fence, so could only view
things from a distance. Shame about the grass.

From Montbuoy south the towns and villages with good mooring are not far apart, which is perfect for our purposes and the uncertain weather. We're not in a hurry, so we are happy to cruise for just a couple of hours before stopping for the day to explore. 

We stayed in Montbuoy just one night and then, after another bout of early morning rain on Wednesday the 19th, had a partially sunny and dry one-and-a-half hours to Chatillon Coligny. There were a few sprinkles just as we arrived, but that didn't last and the sun came out again. The mooring was fantastic--and free--and beautifully maintained.

Local volunteers staff the port office. It wasn't full by any
stretch, just us and 4 boats that arrived later.

Chatillon was another fortified town in days gone by, with feudal roots in the 10th C. Except for the castle keep built in 1190, most of Chatillon was destroyed in 1359 during the Hundred Years War. The rebuilt version of Chatillon suffered greatly in the later Wars of Religion, the damage being done by both Catholics and Protestants.

We treated ourselves to lunch--delicious!--and then wandered our way through town using the guidance provided by the local tourist office.

The castle keep of the 12th C., the only remaining part of the
medieval fortress. It sits on the property of the current castle of
Chatillon that was built in 1854 (not open to the public).

The Church of St. Pierrre-St. Paul. The oldest part of the main
church building is 16th C. Heavily damaged during the Wars
of Religion, it was repaired and enlarged in the 17th C. The bell
tower is completely separate of the church, and the lower portion
was a tower of the 14th C ramparts.

Streets in central Chatillon

The former prison

Towers that were part of the 14th C ramparts pop up here and
there around town. This tower was just outside the castle grounds.

It was, yet again, rainy overnight on Wednesday and early Thursday morning. We didn't want to go far--only 6 kilometers--but there would also be 6 locks to get through on our way to Dammarie-sur-Loing. We left Chatillon at around 10 a.m. and, although the skies were really dark and it seemed as though it might pour rain at any minute, we were still dry when we arrived at Dammarie.

We encountered one lift bridge at a lock (that had
to be manually opened by the eclusier.) At another
lock, water started pouring over the front gate just
before we entered, so we tried to stay closer to the back of
the lock. At all locks an eclusier was present, which
was a good thing because several were quite deep and
help with the lines was much appreciated.

Another great mooring, a picnic/rest area just off the biking
route. Quiet, free mooring/power/water for up to 48 hrs.

Dammarie was very quiet. It had its old church
and, sadly, a now-closed food store. No grocery
shopping today!

I haven't done much with war memorials this year, but
this one was unusual--the first soldier throwing a grenade
I've ever seen as part of a WWI memorial.

A historic wash house (lavoir) in a park across the canal
from our mooring.

While it was still dry, we backtracked by bike to Lock 21 to see the remains of the flight of four locks that were part of the original construction of the canal in the 17th C. It was a little difficult to see what was what because of the overgrown vegetation. The current track of the canal dates from the late 1800's.

Trust me, the locks are there, the first one at left, and three
others going "up" at right. The bridge we're standing on
did not exist when the locks were still being used.

We decided to stay in Dammarie for another night, not because there's so much to do, but because the weather forecast for today was so lousy that we thought we might as well stay in a lovely location at no cost. There's a chateau in the near vicinity (about 45 minutes away by bike) that requires a fair-weather day for our visit, but it can be reached by other towns further along the canal. We calculated that we had just enough time between rain cells to cycle to the next town, Rogny-les-Sept-Ecluses (Rogny the Seven Locks), with two things in mind: look at the mooring and look at the seven-lock staircase that was part of the original canal. The mooring will work fine, the staircase lock was amazing.

Now this is what the 4-lock staircase that we saw on Thursday could have looked more like
with a little bit of TLC.

From the upper level, we see lockhouses and
the ditch that is the path of the original canal.

We were only gone from the boat for an hour, but our luck ran out on the bike ride back--no dodging those raindrops!