Cruising Stats 2025

We've been back in Toul for over a week now, and don't anticipate any additional cruising this season. It was a shame that having to juggle the uncertainties around the bow thruster repair truncated the distance and the number of waterways that we were able to cover this year, specifically, we didn't cruise on the Marne au Rhin Est Canal to Strasbourg. Since it is well to remember that in the world of boating "the only constant is change," we will simply add that canal to our proposed itinerary for next season. We are incredibly grateful for the cruising that we were able to do, and that we could give some of our family and friends a little taste of what our summer "slow travel through France" life is like.

The map below shows the route that we traveled this year. We started in Auxonne (not labeled, but at the bottom of the red that marks the route), followed the Petite Saone River to the northeast to join the Canal des Vosges, got on the Moselle River east of Toul, diverted to a short section of the Marne au Rhin Ouest Canal to moor in Toul, went back on the Moselle to head north to Metz, turned around to head south to Nancy (where we were--very briefly--on the Marne au Rhin Est Canal), and finally returned to Toul.

The route, including the to-and-fro of the Metz and Nancy segments, involved the following:

Number of cruising days: 32

Total engine hours: 109.2

Distance cruised: 471 km (283 miles)

140 locks

8 mobile bridges

2 tunnels

1 aqueduct

I have finished my project to caulk all of the exterior window frames just in time for our upcoming getaway to see the tall ships in Amsterdam. Lon has made great progress on repairing the "dings" and rust spots that are a constant on a steel-hulled boat, especially one that has been actively cruising. 

With as much time as we've now spent in Toul, it's definitely starting to feel like a home-away-from-home. 

One nice thing about summers in larger towns is that they often have free
activities on a routine basis. Toul has been having a summer outdoor concert
 series. Last night's concert was in the park that is adjacent to the cathedral
 and behind the Hotel de Ville. It was a lovely spot to listen to the double-bill
 of a jazz chanteuse and a reggae band (lower photo).

In the shadow of the Toul ramparts, the landscaping sheep head 
 home after a hard day of "work" eating grass.