Cap D'Agde info requested

[alt]

If Tryben is a Sealine S23, I have been looking at it as it's up for sale in Cobbs Quay marina Poole, looks a very tidy boat.

The boat was spotless when I bought it. It was even more spotless when I sold it to OP. From my brief encounter with Graham I know he would have taken good care of her.

Seriously spec'ed boat for its size! I see she now has a bowthruster but is on stilts (I sold her with a pretty-much brand new trailer)

Will be a nice boat for someone.

 

[Robin]

A very interesting thread and something in our maybe list in a similar boat if we find a good one. May I ask what your fuel consumption worked out at on average and if range between fill ups was a problem? How about overnight mooring fees en route and access to power or do you have a generator on board? how far did you plan on travel per day or was it totally flexible?

Thanks, Robin.

 

[SgtColon]

If Tryben is a Sealine S23, I have been looking at it as it's up for sale in Cobbs Quay marina Poole, looks a very tidy boat.

Yes Tryben is a Sealine S23. I bought it from Alt who had maintained it meticulously, I had it professionally maintained and had the bowthruster fitted which was immensly reassuring when returning to the marina. I sold it to someone who was ing to use it on the river Ouse at York which I dont think would have been its element. He sold it to someone on the South coast who did make cotact with me saying he had enjoyed the boat but was replacing it with something bigger.

Graham

 

[SgtColon]

A very interesting thread and something in our maybe list in a similar boat if we find a good one. May I ask what your fuel consumption worked out at on average and if range between fill ups was a problem? How about overnight mooring fees en route and access to power or do you have a generator on board? how far did you plan on travel per day or was it totally flexible?

Thanks, Robin.

Hi Robin,
Yes it’s kind of a bucket list thing. It is an amazing experience but I did it mostly single manned apart from the stretch between Lyon and the Med and if I was going to do it again it would have to be in company. Some amazing people to meet along the way. There can be few retired couples that remain in Australia and New Zealand during their winter months as they all seem to be cruising the French waterways and thank goodness they do for they are so friendly and helpful. The boats that they use are generally elderly economical single engine Dutch steel cruisers, The ex hire boats also seem very popular and fit for the purpose. I wouldn’t feel happy about taking a sparkling new boat through there because of the constant change of where the waterside hazards meet the side of the hull. Some of the locks for example fill completely to within a few cm of the concrete edge. This makes it very difficult to establish where the fenders should be during any part of the journey, hence mine was protected with wrapped, sealed, floatable tyres and wooden planks. The flat straight sides of my boat helped enormously to secure it to the sides of locks where the water force can make it very difficult to stabilize the boat especially if the bow is close to the lock gate. All the locks are automatic but it is the smaller locks that seem to be the most disruptive and it is not uncommon to see a crew struggling to control their boat in or on the approach to a lock.
Regarding fuel consumption I will PM you when I get back to the boat where the log is but the distance between marinas where fuel can be obtained can be a worry. This I quickly learnt to deal with by following the example of the regular cruisers purchasing a suitable trolley and plastic containers. The Fluviacarte guides identify where along the route are situated car petrol / diesel service stations. Clean fuel can be purchased at these locations. A pedal cycle is also a huge benefit to have aboard for the collection of food.
Overnight mooring fees within the river / canal system are very cheap but it is often not possible to reach a marina. Whilst free the small halts in villages or along the route may not provide a power supply. Even these may be occupied or too distant and so you should feel confident about and have the suitable equipment ie spikes and lines to secure your boat to the canal / riverside. Your fridge is likely to be the largest drain to power. A generator is useful but with just an overnight stop I didn’t really need it.
I found myself concerned about whether I would find a mooring for the night. Chiefly this was because I was mostly single crewed but I soon found that in the absence of a strong current it was easier than I had thought to moor up alongside the canal / river and these were some of the most peaceful and enjoyable overnight stays. I did however favour an early start to the day with at least the plan to cruise just about four hours before settling in to a halt. This was not always practical. The days sometimes stretched out because I found some of the mooring facilities occupied / undesireable / too exposed.
Hope that helps

Graham

 

[Robin]

Hi Robin,
Yes it’s kind of a bucket list thing. It is an amazing experience but I did it mostly single manned apart from the stretch between Lyon and the Med and if I was going to do it again it would have to be in company. Some amazing people to meet along the way. There can be few retired couples that remain in Australia and New Zealand during their winter months as they all seem to be cruising the French waterways and thank goodness they do for they are so friendly and helpful. The boats that they use are generally elderly economical single engine Dutch steel cruisers, The ex hire boats also seem very popular and fit for the purpose. I wouldn’t feel happy about taking a sparkling new boat through there because of the constant change of where the waterside hazards meet the side of the hull. Some of the locks for example fill completely to within a few cm of the concrete edge. This makes it very difficult to establish where the fenders should be during any part of the journey, hence mine was protected with wrapped, sealed, floatable tyres and wooden planks. The flat straight sides of my boat helped enormously to secure it to the sides of locks where the water force can make it very difficult to stabilize the boat especially if the bow is close to the lock gate. All the locks are automatic but it is the smaller locks that seem to be the most disruptive and it is not uncommon to see a crew struggling to control their boat in or on the approach to a lock.
Regarding fuel consumption I will PM you when I get back to the boat where the log is but the distance between marinas where fuel can be obtained can be a worry. This I quickly learnt to deal with by following the example of the regular cruisers purchasing a suitable trolley and plastic containers. The Fluviacarte guides identify where along the route are situated car petrol / diesel service stations. Clean fuel can be purchased at these locations. A pedal cycle is also a huge benefit to have aboard for the collection of food.
Overnight mooring fees within the river / canal system are very cheap but it is often not possible to reach a marina. Whilst free the small halts in villages or along the route may not provide a power supply. Even these may be occupied or too distant and so you should feel confident about and have the suitable equipment ie spikes and lines to secure your boat to the canal / riverside. Your fridge is likely to be the largest drain to power. A generator is useful but with just an overnight stop I didn’t really need it.
I found myself concerned about whether I would find a mooring for the night. Chiefly this was because I was mostly single crewed but I soon found that in the absence of a strong current it was easier than I had thought to moor up alongside the canal / river and these were some of the most peaceful and enjoyable overnight stays. I did however favour an early start to the day with at least the plan to cruise just about four hours before settling in to a halt. This was not always practical. The days sometimes stretched out because I found some of the mooring facilities occupied / undesireable / too exposed.
Hope that helps

Graham

Thank you, actually very helpful, the fuel usage figs would be very helpful too whenever you have them to hand.

Robin.