September through the canals, 1.6m draft

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smb

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We have been working on bringing the boat back to the uk from the med for a change of scenery.
What with unsettled weather, the Mistral and a lively Rhone we are way behind the plan and have left the boat in Valance while we return home to see about work for the winter.
We had hoped to transit the French canals in September, but at least one website I have found via of Grehans pages suggest that levels of water are nearing the level where conservation measures take place.
Obviously we don't want to get halfway and run out of water, similarly be delayed and run out of time.

Are the canals generally viable in September or are we better off waiting until the spring, possibly moving a bit further north now so we do not have to deal with the Rhone in spate come may.

Steve
 
We came down in the summer (Loire, Central, Briare) and just got away with it - 1.5 metre draft. But we have a very fat bulb on the bottom of the keel - boats with a thin fin can slice through the mud! In the spring you could have to contend with a lot of adverse current in the Rhone so getting past that is a good plan. You could be faced with a cold winter if you stay aboard though!
 
As nobody seems to be interested in your enquiry. I travelled this way a few years ago. You could plan your route via the larger canals or better still contact the VNF who will give you upto date information on closures and depths.
 
Although the Canal du Centre is short of water and slated to close (don't try that way!) everywhere else seems ok and September could be perfectly possible. The 'Champagne' route (i.e the Marne/Marne canals) is usually reliably supplied with water and has a few commercial barges to keep depths reasonably maintained. No guarantees but I'd go for it and September weather can be delightful.
 
With the amount of rain we have had recently I would have thought you would have had no problem, certainly the water levels on the Saone are up and the canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne should be no problem. We brought our Feeling 1040 down to Auxonne last year, draft with mast 1.75m, without as we were somewhat less, and took her back to the UK in the spring with no problems. Now moved to the dark side on a Dutch steel cruiser. Good luck
 
Thanks for the replies.

I also did not anticipate a problem as the qty of rainfall had the Rhone topping 5 knots at times in July, maybe it didn't fall sufficiently in the right places.

Our initial plan was to use the Champagne route but we had been put off it by a few people saying that amenities / nice places were few and far between, and we used canal du Centre in 2005 going down and enjoyed it despite a bit of ploughing near the summit.

Is the slated closure of Canal Du Centre temporary or permanent, I wonder.


Whichever way we choose, it looks as if work pressures are going to limit our time so it may be a decision to be made in the spring. A more pressing need is to find somewhere a bit further north to leave the boat for the winter, Condrieu or St Jean being the more obvious choices. First of all we need to get out of Valence which could be tricky as their stated 1.6m depth seemed a bit optimistic. We touched bottom ferry gliding between the piles whilst stemming the aforementioned 5 knots of current during our approach, and then got stuck in the putty between the fuel dock and the visitors berth. Mon Capitain assured us it was just 'herbage' and there's always 1.6m. We'll see.


Steve
 
We found the champagne route to be most enjoyable, plenty of places to stop once, although up to Langres no facilities. We can recommend Auxonne as an excellent over winter stop, part of H2O, but don't let that put you off. We were here last year and will be again this winter, mostly staying on the boat.We much prefer it to St Jean. Happy to help if you need any more information.
 
The champagne route starts at the river Marne and just beyond Paris and includes the Marne and the Marne lateral canal as far as Epernay, the 'champagne capitol' of France. Some lovely stops on the way including Lagny, Meaux, home of Brie de Meaux, La Ferte-sous-Jouarre and many more. After Epernay the route to the med continues down the canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne, starting at Vitry le Francois and then joining the Saone just past Maxilly, then on the Saone down to Lyon, where the Saone joins the Rhone down to the med. We brought our yache over last year down as far as Lyon, then over wintered in Auxonne before returning the same way as far as Rouen where we had left our mast.
We have now changed our boat for a steel cruiser. Hope this helps
 
Champagne route is lovely. Make sure you stop in Dormans! Lovely, quaint French village. The locals gave us a very warm welcome and even gave us a bottle of their own branded champers after going to a free concert the local choir put on!
 
The water level problem only applies to the Canal du Midi. Unless you want to go via Bordeaux the up the west coast of France that is not a canal you would use to get back to the UK.

The route from the south of France is up the Rhone - Saone - both large rivers then into the canal system for the last 1/3rd. If you follow the main commercial and the most direct routes you are not going to run out of water.

All the lock keepers have complete information about the canal system and if there are problems ahead they will know and advise you of alternative routes. It is a lovely experience but in winter you have the problems of fast flowing rivers and possible icing in the smaller canals.

The following link also has links to lots of canal info

http://www.michaelbriant.com/french_canal_routes.htm

fair winds

Michael
 
Paw Paw said:
All the lock keepers have complete information about the canal system and if there are problems ahead they will know and advise you of alternative routes.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately, I can't agree with this point. During our trip along the Marne (and canal lateral) none of the lock keepers we spoke to were aware the Canal entre Marne et Burgogne was closed for maintenance (for a month!). Even when we'd been advised by another boater that this was the case and we specifically asked some lock keepers, none of them knew. We only got official confirmation the canal was closed when we arrived at Vitry-le-Francois, where the canal starts, to find it was closed! The local marina had a copy of the VNF notice on their door.
The VNF website is also a nightmare when it comes to searching for information about closures. You have to search for a particular area and you only see notices between the dates you specify. The dates relate to when the notices are issued, not when they actually apply. The notice for the above closure had been issued two to three months prior, and we hadn't been able to find it until we realised thus.
 
French canals navigation information

Yes, Michael is unfortunately a little wide of the mark. The Canal du Centre is due to close mid-September due to lack of water. The Nivernais has had problems in recent years, although not this and the same is true of the Canal de Bourgogne. The Marne à la Saone (its former but still sensible name) is usually reliably supplied. Most lock-keepers (where there are any and they're not holiday students) might be aware of local conditions, or on their particular canal, but will not necessarily know the wider picture.

The 'Champagne' route from Paris is the more northerly and easterly of the options and it passes through the Champagne region including Epernay and Chalons-en-Champagne - River Marne, Marne Lateral canal, Marne à la Saone (Canal Entre Champagne et Bourgogne) and so to the River Saone.
http://www.french-waterways.com/waterways/practicalities/canal-routes-mediterranean.html

You'll see, at the foot of the f-w 'Practical Navigation' section http://www.french-waterways.com/waterways/navigation-detail.html links to the VNF stoppages and works information at http://www.vnf.fr/vnf/content.vnf?action=content&occ_id=30461&son_id=33037 and the maintenance map at http://www.vnf.fr/reseau/avibat.php Finally, there is a a nationwide VNF single telephone point of access for enquiries, making lock arrangements and notifying breakdowns and emergencies - +33 (0)800 863 000 – although you will need to understand and speak some French.
 
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Normally there is sufficient water in the commercial waterways for a yacht and in September it should not be a problem.

Yes of course there are maintenance issues and you need to refer to the VNF web site which does list them.

If you are interested in doing a delivery from the UK to the Med or vv, as was the question in the original post, then following the commercial routes you will have little problem with water depths. If you want stray off the main routes into the picturesque non commercial canals then the situation is different. In the same way that the UK has roadworks the waterways in France have 'water' works...

99% of the folks who follow the main routes outlined in my book have no problem. If you wander off in the main waterways in a drought then of course it may be different. In the many transits of the canals I have done both fast (10 days) and slow (too long to mention) I have found the lock keepers very knowledgeable and helpful. Of course the students manning the locks or mopeds in high summer are less well informed but they have always inquired at their command office for me or given me the telephone number and the regular lock keepers.

No adventure however modes is without obstacles or problems but the French waterways are for most people a thoroughly enjoyable and pleasurable experience and to try to turn the passage of them into some sort of 'outward bound' course is quite silly. Just not true!
 
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