Tom Price
N/A
LD Lines run daily from Portsmouth to Le Havre and during the summer introduce a fast ferry taking only 3-hours, making it possible for SMBO to join ship without suffering a long Channel crossing. Good idea?
The target is Rouen which I know well, first visiting in 1983 in a one-off catamaran built on a Prout hull by Chris Hammond, designer of the Hirondelle. After the Channel Islands, then the Westcountry, that year we detoured up the tidal Seine while exploring the Normandy coast to Boulogne.
Records of the trip are gathering dust somewhere so these pics come from a recent expedition on my old boat.
But the passage is easily done by a yacht at 5 knots, a semi-displacement cruiser at 9 knots, or anything faster up to the river speed limit of 15 knots. Contrary to some misconceptions there are no low bridges, no locks nor CEVNI requirements to reach this delightful city only a few hours from the sea.
Le Havre is easy to find: big cliffs to the East, nothing to the West, plus a fairway of buoys from the Cap Antifer oil terminal to guide you in. Past traffic lights controlling entry to the docks the large marina opens up with all facilities including fuel and yacht club, with less pretentious eateries a short walk away.
Leaving at LW is essential to catch the flood tide. We crossed the Rade and entered the Chenal de Rouen, swept onwards by the current. The water is shallow initially and can be very choppy in the wake of passing traffic
Under the Pont du Normandie
Smoky industrial zones on one bank contrast with attractive hamlets on the other; at every village there is a car ferry about to scuttle across but displaying no warning signs as to its intentions
If ascending the Seine is straightforward, coming down is not: somewhere the advancing flood meets you and slower yachts may have to tie up and wait its passing. While scrutinising every pile and mooring buoy – and there aren’t many of them – I didn’t notice this big tanker quietly overtaking me. Phew!
Rural environs give way to working docks as Rouen appears. I remember Bassin Saint Gervais as being very grim in those days: no welcome, with only a few small pontoons monopolised by unfriendly police launches. But all that has changed thanks to the ‘Rouen Armada’ an assembly of tall ships held every five years for which a new marina AND new lifting bridge have been built. So if names like KRUZENSTERN, SORLANDET and AMERIGO VESOUCCI raise the pulse then put June 2013 in your diary!
This time we found a new marina with little company but seagulls and their droppings. This shot shows Grehan passing through on his way back home after six years in the Med – well done!
To refuel you have to motor upstream under the bridges
But the fuelling barge had had freeboard higher than I could reach and only managed to make fast after some dexterous lassoing. As a seemingly innocuous peniche went past its wash picked the boat up and flung us against the barge again and again. TG for the integrity of Tyler mouldings!
Licking my wounds I headed back downstream, this time rounding Ile Lacroix and finding a slot in the original Halte Nautique. Here the friendly Capitaine couldn’t have been more helpful, and tho’ amenities are basic there’s a wide range of restaurants over the bridge into town.
You must explore this city with its complex mixture of mediaeval and modern architecture, not least Joan of Arc’s church in the marketplace. If you’re not into churches – the cathedral alone is quite impressive - then definitely see this one for its breathtaking stained glass and sweeping wooden ceiling
There are many more attractions, enough to occupy you for several days
That’s without jumping on the train to Paris, only an hour away. No wonder I love this city!
The return journey includes Honfleur of course, and a detour to Harfleur. Where?
Watch this space
The target is Rouen which I know well, first visiting in 1983 in a one-off catamaran built on a Prout hull by Chris Hammond, designer of the Hirondelle. After the Channel Islands, then the Westcountry, that year we detoured up the tidal Seine while exploring the Normandy coast to Boulogne.
Records of the trip are gathering dust somewhere so these pics come from a recent expedition on my old boat.
But the passage is easily done by a yacht at 5 knots, a semi-displacement cruiser at 9 knots, or anything faster up to the river speed limit of 15 knots. Contrary to some misconceptions there are no low bridges, no locks nor CEVNI requirements to reach this delightful city only a few hours from the sea.
Le Havre is easy to find: big cliffs to the East, nothing to the West, plus a fairway of buoys from the Cap Antifer oil terminal to guide you in. Past traffic lights controlling entry to the docks the large marina opens up with all facilities including fuel and yacht club, with less pretentious eateries a short walk away.
Leaving at LW is essential to catch the flood tide. We crossed the Rade and entered the Chenal de Rouen, swept onwards by the current. The water is shallow initially and can be very choppy in the wake of passing traffic
Under the Pont du Normandie
Smoky industrial zones on one bank contrast with attractive hamlets on the other; at every village there is a car ferry about to scuttle across but displaying no warning signs as to its intentions
If ascending the Seine is straightforward, coming down is not: somewhere the advancing flood meets you and slower yachts may have to tie up and wait its passing. While scrutinising every pile and mooring buoy – and there aren’t many of them – I didn’t notice this big tanker quietly overtaking me. Phew!
Rural environs give way to working docks as Rouen appears. I remember Bassin Saint Gervais as being very grim in those days: no welcome, with only a few small pontoons monopolised by unfriendly police launches. But all that has changed thanks to the ‘Rouen Armada’ an assembly of tall ships held every five years for which a new marina AND new lifting bridge have been built. So if names like KRUZENSTERN, SORLANDET and AMERIGO VESOUCCI raise the pulse then put June 2013 in your diary!
This time we found a new marina with little company but seagulls and their droppings. This shot shows Grehan passing through on his way back home after six years in the Med – well done!
To refuel you have to motor upstream under the bridges
But the fuelling barge had had freeboard higher than I could reach and only managed to make fast after some dexterous lassoing. As a seemingly innocuous peniche went past its wash picked the boat up and flung us against the barge again and again. TG for the integrity of Tyler mouldings!
Licking my wounds I headed back downstream, this time rounding Ile Lacroix and finding a slot in the original Halte Nautique. Here the friendly Capitaine couldn’t have been more helpful, and tho’ amenities are basic there’s a wide range of restaurants over the bridge into town.
You must explore this city with its complex mixture of mediaeval and modern architecture, not least Joan of Arc’s church in the marketplace. If you’re not into churches – the cathedral alone is quite impressive - then definitely see this one for its breathtaking stained glass and sweeping wooden ceiling
There are many more attractions, enough to occupy you for several days
That’s without jumping on the train to Paris, only an hour away. No wonder I love this city!
The return journey includes Honfleur of course, and a detour to Harfleur. Where?
Watch this space
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