French Canals 2014

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mikecontessa26

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Hi, i've searched to see if this has been discussed before (i'm sure it has), I'm looking into doing the French canals from Port St Louis back to le Havre in June. Looking at the Rhone currents it looks like i'll be making just 2 knots against a 3.5 knot current with my little Yanmar 2GM.

has anyone had any experience of going against the current this time of year, is the current consitant all day?

Thanks

Michael
 
Came down last year and spoke to lots of folk going up. The water flow is fairly consistent but current speed varies according to the rivers characteristics and your position on bends.
It will be a long hard slog and there are not too many stopping places within your daily range. Remember that if your hard working engine fails you need a good anchor ready to deploy if you don't want to become matchsticks!!
Several people abandoned their plans and went via low loader!!
I will be in Port Saint Louis in May, where is your boat?
 
We came down a few years ago (end August) and the current was ca 6.5 knots - most people were just holed up somewhere. Saw hardly any non-commercial boats going up. Check conditions if you can before committing to going through.
 
When I went down in 95 I wrote this:

7 Jul. Tournon – Valence pk 110 1 lock 19 km 2 hrs 50

Got to Valence pk 112 in 2 hrs 10, but there was nowhere suitable to tie up. Turned around and motored back and tied up just down stream of the bridge at pk 110, after having tried a likely looking spot, but there was lots of underwater rocks in the shallows. It took 40 mins to cover 2 km against the current. There are lots of places on the bank that look inviting, but lots of submerged boulders. Nice town accessed via tunnel and across a park.
 
Thanks for the replies, the boat is currently in Greece but should be in Port St Louis end of May/start of June. I'm going to look into road transport given the unpredictability i'm self employed so once i take 3 weeks off it starts to be more cost effective, especially if it won't be fun :(
 
I would not even think of it with such a small engine, there are places on The Rhone where, even in summer, it can exceed its stated current, it all depends on local conditions. If one of the power stations has lowered a sluice for some reason, the ensuing current can be quite high for quite a distance downstream. Also you may have difficulty entering some of the locks, where the 'cross flow' can be quite considerable just as you enter.
Also I believe you would be very surprised by the amount of fuel you use running the motor at full speed for so much of the time.
So Yes, use road haulage, perhaps all the way to the north, or perhaps either as far as Challon sur Saone or St Jean de Losne, and do the rest of the journey via the canals, a lovely trip.
 
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