Liveaboard barge as a single, canal du midi

[TravellingMan]

Hello ... I am extremely fit 71 and have been backpacking for the last 2+ years but VERY new to boating so will probably ask many daft questions!

I am hoping to buy a 13m (ish) 'wide beam narrow boat' and 'potter about' (all year) on aforementioned canal. My initial queries are;

1) Is it doable?
2) Mail address?
3) What is the paperwork required, have read that ICC certificate is necessary for UK expat permanently in France?
4) Should I be looking in UK or France for such a boat?
Thank you for any replies and congratulations on this website which is viewable on mobile (many aren't)!

 

[TQA]

Well doable

Use a trusted relative or friend as your home address and get them to forward essential stuff.

Grehan of this parish is the expert on everything technical on the French canals he will know about the paperwork required.

If you buy in the UK how do you plan to get it to France. Crossing the channel can be dodgy in a boat designed for inland waters. It can be done but you are unlikely to get insurance.

Read https://www.amazon.co.uk/Narrow-Dog-Carcassonne-Terry-Darlington/dp/0553816691

 

[TravellingMan]

Thanks TQA ... sound info ... with regard to crossing to France I met a man who knows a man who ropes 3 together and on instruction from coastguard orders goes like hell!

 

[chinita]

Thanks TQA ... sound info ... with regard to crossing to France I met a man who knows a man who ropes 3 together and on instruction from coastguard orders goes like hell!

Good luck.:encouragement:

You have obviously never spoken to a Coastguard.

 

[Tranona]

Your pottering will be constrained by your ability to handle locks, which is really a 2 person job. Danger you will end up stuck in one place.

Anyway - yes, you will require an ICC and the CEVNI exam to make it valid for inland waterways. To do this you will have to take an RYA certificate first as without experience you won't be able to be assessed for the ICC. Ironically if you hire a boat in France you won't need it - but doubt you could do that as a single hander!

Best to buy a boat there - not only is the choice greater, but getting a suitable boat from the UK to the Canal du Midi is a big challenge. Alternative is to buy in Holland as again better choice and you could get to the CduM without going to sea.

 

[TravellingMan]

Thank you for your informative reply. With regard to 'locks' I recently hung around the Grand Union canal and met, talked to and tried my hand at locks under their supervision, 2 seperate narrow boaters who liveaboard and cruise on their own and both said after a short while it becomes second nature and not a problem. I read and have observed that the locks on CduM are mostly automatic and many have keepers so conclude that locks there should be less of a problem than UK.

Is it possible to take the RYA, ICC and CEVNI in France?

 

[vyv_cox]

A couple of comments:
There are not too many places along Canal du Midi where you would wish to hole up for winter. It can be a very long walk from the boat to a tiny village where you might be able to buy a loaf. The canal manages to avoid most of the towns, with a couple of notable exceptions.
Sections of the canal are drained in winter for maintenance, so movement at that time can be severely constrained.
As said, singlehanding locks (I think we passed 180 between Bordeaux and Agde) would be pretty difficult. In all those we passed there were no two the same as regards bollards, rings, hoops etc., so the shore person never knows what to expect. You cannot rely on lock keeper assistance as many are unmanned and automatic.
We saw several vessels for sale along the canal, I would take a week or two to survey a few before buying in UK.
Buy a bike! A very useful vehicle on the canals.

 

[dslittle]

Very doable. My pal (who is just slightly younger than you) has been living there alone on his narrow boat for the last couple of years. Admittedly, he lived on it in the UK before having it transported down but manages well. He has no problems moving around, often doing so with visiting friends. Climate is great and the locals are lovely. When we stop sailing it is a definite possibility that we will do the same.

 

[TravellingMan]

Thanks for the encouragement and anecdotal evidence as to doability! ... I had a brilliant cycling holiday along the Bordeaux end of the CduM and as you say the climate is good and the locals friendly.

 

[TravellingMan]

Thanks for the contribution. I heard that parts of the canal were drained last winter so one needs to take that into account. I agree about a bicycle, have been talking to boaters about folding bikes as well as boats. I'm off to stay near carcassonne next week so will hire a bike and scour the canal for 'a vendre'!

 

[Davegriff]

Certainly you'll need a bike, as vyv says, towns are few and far between, and the old village shops are fast disappearing for favour of "out of town" shopping. Very sad.

Although I dont envy single-handed locking, there's plenty of one-man, even one-women, boats on the Canal du Midi. Most are very friendly and all I've spoken to said they had no problems with locks. All locks are now automatic, and many from Toulouse southwards are manned during the summer.

Grehan's site is the one to watch as regards closures - supposedly a section north of Toulouse for one month and section south for another, but to be honest, even discussing directly with VNF, its a bit random (typically french). For the month previous and after you'll need to speak French as the locks can only be opened by appointment. Phoning to do so is made more difficult by the much changing local dialect! But generally, locking doesn't cause much problem in reality.

If its company you want, there's a sizable Brit comunity cruising the canals of Europe, some of whom tend to congregate - some a little too much I think and who seem to dislike all things French and proud not to speak the language! Very odd. Most canal dwellers though, of all nationalities, are wonderful, helpful people. Made many friends on a (very) leisurely journey.

You'll love it I'm sure.

Sorry for the ramble.

 

[TravellingMan]

Thanks DaveGriff for positive comments based upon your own experience.... during my cycling holiday alng the CduM I met and talked to many boaters and agree with " Most canal dwellers though, of all nationalities, are wonderful, helpful people." But it is strange about some expat brits attitudes to 'the locals' in the countries they choose to live in, the irony is that if they heard immigrants to uk making the same sort of comments about England and the English they would be 'suggesting' that if they feel like that why don't they 'go away'!

 

[mikenfi]

Check out the DBA Dutch barge association. Registing in France is a ball ache. We have had an evening with some barge dwellers telling us about their 9 month battle with the buracrats. It's sounds like a humourous battle!!! ICC can be done here (France) in you boat, easy apparently. Cevni is done online. Again easy! Buying a barge... H20 marinas in France have links to barges for sale. I would reccommend heading to France to look for barges, you can get them for £60k-£600k! I can enquire here what's for sale locally if you like, would need to know your budget.

You will need the French health service card if you are permanently can take a year to come through. May have some problems getting it now with the Brexit in full swing (loweing the price of my ££££'s)

Postal address, PO BOX is possible various banks will understand this is the situation. However you can have pensions paid to French account!

 

[TravellingMan]

Thanks Mikenfi .... have sent pm

 

[JanZ]

Don't just be constrained by the Canal du Midi- the rest of the French waterway system is vast and superb for extended cruising as a liveaboard subject if course to flowrates etc.
Jan

 

[TravellingMan]

Thanks JanZ ....

 

[Old Thady]

I stayed beside the Canal du Midi a few years ago and, at the time, the locals were very worried about a disease that was killing the canalside trees. The concern was that lack of shade and aesthetic loss would make the canal far less appealing to boaters and others. I don't know if these fears proved to be well-founded.

 

[vyv_cox]

I stayed beside the Canal du Midi a few years ago and, at the time, the locals were very worried about a disease that was killing the canalside trees. The concern was that lack of shade and aesthetic loss would make the canal far less appealing to boaters and others. I don't know if these fears proved to be well-founded.

Unfortunately they did. Thousands of trees have been felled.

 

[TravellingMan]

I'm currently staying beside the CduM and the felling of the canalside trees is going on everywhere but the plan is to replace as they go. Very sad but necessary.

 

[TQA]

I would avoid folding bikes and go for a regular mountain bike. It will be considerably cheaper and the large wheels do better on rough tracks.