Friday 23rd June 2017 Soulanges to Condé-sur-Marne 40kms 8 locks

Dredging below Ablancourt

15.6°C Warm and sunny with a good strong breeze, a few cloudy spells. The Dutch cruiser that moored behind us the previous evening went at 7.30am – they were going back to the Netherlands via the Moselle and Rhine. We left ten minutes later at 7.40am, heading uphill first to turn the hanging pole then a U-turn to get back to the lock, 4 Soulanges (1.60m). A couple were already sitting at the end of the moorings, fishing. 2.3kms to lock 5 Ablancourt 

Mooring at Pogny

(2.00m) cool under the shady trees. The lock walls at lock 5 had at some time been made higher by about a metre to cope with fluctuating water levels as it was river-fed. It had no weir and had feed paddles permanently open. 3.6kms to the next. Had a short wait for a dredger, loading mud into the hold of Paraguay, to move over and let us past. Mike had to stand on the stool on the back deck to reach the turn-pole above lock 6 La Chausée. A VNF man in a van arrived, said bonjour and went into the lock cabin with an aluminium case (collecting data from the lock?) he stayed a few minutes and

Mallow on the canal bank near St Germain

then carried on down the towpath. 6.5kms to the next. Made a cuppa and sat out in the sunshine with a very welcome cooling breeze. A cruiser had just come up in lock 7 St Germain (2.70m) There were bins at the lock so Mike nipped off with our accumulated bagful (the bin at Soulanges had gone missing while we were moored there and never re-appeared) 4.75kms to the next. Mike phoned Chalons to tell them we were on our way back to Condé, it was one of the Chef’s co-workers who answered his phone and he said there would be someone at Condé later. A Dutch cruiser went past heading uphill. A DB was coming up in lock 8 Sarry (2.50m) we went in as soon as he cleared the lock. 5.9kms into Chalons and there were starting to get more and

Cathedral at Chaons-en-Champagne

more cyclists on the towpath. Took photos of two of the new-fangled weed gathering machines which were sat on the bank before the lock. No turn-pole above lock 9 Chalons – a sensor activated the lock. A very smart motorcycle was parked by the lock and a guy (who was definitely a biker) came out of the office to lift the rod as I put a rope around a bollard, then he fetched a windlass and wound the bottom end manual paddle up – none of the hydraulic paddles seemed to be working. A German cruiser was heading for lock as we left it – from Neass-am-Rhin, must be

Weed gathering machines at Chalons

another one bound for the Moselle then. 7.1kms to lock 10 Juvigny. Empty péniche Keiko from Terneuzen in the Netherlands was moored by the silo quay, wheelhouse down, car off-loaded, most likely off shopping in Chalons. Round the last bend in the canal at KP36 at 1pm, 13kms in a straight line all the way to Condé. Down lock 10, lock house shuttered and empty. 5kms to lock 11 Vraux (2.6kms) whose lock house was lived in and surrounded by masses of flowers. They had one of the biggest stores of wood we’d seen in a long time. An empty peniche, Maringo from Dunkirk was moored on the left under the long avenue of

Capitanerie at Chalons

tall plane trees, crew in the wheelhouse keeping cool – they said bonjour as we passed. A bit further on a DB was also sheltering under the big trees, a big hotel boat with bikes - must be having a rest between guests. A loaded péniche turned out of the Canal de la Marne à l’Aisne towards us, we slowed off so we didn’t meet Relicat from Paris in the narrow bit where there are the remains of an old bridge. Turned right at the junction at 3.10pm and saw that our old friend

Lock keeper winding a paddle at lk 9 Chalons

Gerard had “reserved” the pontoon for us, cordoning off our mooring place with some rope. Our next door neighbours were on their boat and came out to say hello and offer help with our ropes. The British cruiser that had been moored by our bows had gone, it must have been sold, a Dutch boat was temporarily in its place. Nice to be back – now to get connected to the mains electricity and retrieve our air con unit so we can cool the cabin down, then sort out the campervan ready for our next road trip….

13kms long straight canal all the way to Conde-sur-Marne

Wednesday 21st June 2017 Ecriennes to Soulanges 19kms 7 locks

Sunset on the longest day. Soulanges

16.0°C Very hot and sunny, a few clouds building up after lunch. 42.5°C outside. Set off at 8.40am down lock 68 Ecriennes (3.10m) There was a burnt-out cruiser on the bank just before the lock, surrounded with mesh fencing. The lockhouse was lived in, but there was no one about. 2.6kms to the next lock and lots of early morning cyclists taking advantage of the cooler start to the day. We passed a loaded peniche called Burnaut,

Wind generators near Vitry

heading uphill (the unloading place seems to be below Orconte). A tern was following behind checking the wash from the big boat for any stunned fish, surprised if he’d see any as the churned up water was very muddy and weedy. I cooked some spuds and pork steaks in the pressure cooker to eat cold later. Lock 69 Luxemont (3.30m) had a shuttered abandoned lock house. We had a brief cleg attack, big ones – easier to swat. 3.5kms to lock 70 Frignicourt (3.10m) a

Peniche Anti-Lope washing down abv lk 71 Desert

cruiser (ex hireboat) had just come up lock 70, we passed it by the zapper post. An empty peniche called Anti-Lope was washing down just before the last lock on the canal and an empty called Modicum was moored by the silos above lock 71 Désert (3.40m). Mike handed in our zapper to the usual lock keeper and we chatted as we dropped down in the chamber. As we came out from under the big railway bridge below the lock we could see a loaded boat, Westropa NL

Cleaning down after unloading

coming through the narrow section through the next bridge, about 100m away, so we stopped and hovered to keep out of the weeds until he (and the cruiser trailing behind him) had cleared the narrows, then we went past them. The cruiser was a Belgian flagged ex-hire boat with a couple on the roof who were very sun-tanned. There was a long string of péniches at Chantier Garnier, some old ones waiting conversion to houseboats and a few newly painted working boats. La Doller

Modicum moored abv lk 71 Desert

was newly painted, Renaisance now a houseboat, Ste Maria had been shortened. Loaded boats Keiko and Celentas were moored side-by-side. Kiev was moored next to Scaldis and DB Majaj. Poulebot was empty and moored at the end of the line at the chantier. The Port-de-Plaisance entrance arm was filled with DBs, then two old boats in need of converting were tied up, one had Hamburg on its stern. The canal was still full of weeds and there were (unusually) loads of empty beer bottle in the canal (someone had a party and not heard of bottle banks?) Empty péniche Kendall was

Loaded Dutch boat Westropa below lock 71 Desert in Vitry

moored by the first silo at the junction with the canal Latéral a la Marne, its crew were catching the breeze in their wheelhouse and waved and said bonjour as we passed them. Masses of weed on the junction as we turned left at 11.20am. Empty péniche Feeling (named for the skipper’s favourite song, he once told us) was waiting to load at the second silo berth. As we progressed down the Latéral the weed got less, thankfully, so less spinning the stuff off the prop in reverse was needed. At last! The powers that be had cleared the site of the fuel depot that had

Site of the burnt out fuel depot

burned down years ago. Mike took some photos. Passing around Vitry on an embankment we had good views of the town and their campsite for passing Gitanes (Gypsies). Looked almost empty, they must be out doing farm work, several that remained waved cheerily as we went past. Empty peniche Paraguay was just leaving lock 1 Vitry (2.60m) and we passed by the turn pole and said bonjour to the skipper as we slid past and into the lock. 1.3kms to the next. Met a yacht without masts (from Hamburg) as we passed the old lime kilns and the site of another fuel depot, also long gone. A Dutch new-build DB was coming up in the deep lock 2 Lermite

Female damselfly

(3.90m) so we had a short wait while he cleared the lock, then we went down. 1.2kms to the next and it was getting really hot again 35°C and rising. Down lock 3 Couvrot a shallow 1.2kms. Loaded boat Aude from Maasbracht was heading uphill below Couvrot, we passed by the turn pole. 4.9kms to Soulanges lock. We stopped on the mooring above the lock at 1.30pm. There was a lone fisherman at the end of the shady mooring, he was OK as we went for the uphill end so we could get satellite TV over the trees. Loaded boat Rectif was coming up lock 4

Moored on the quay at Soulanges

and a Dutch steel boat went down. Not long after a new-build tjalk with a smoky engine came up. At 2.20pm loaded péniche My Way went down. Mike went on the moped into Vitry to retrieve the car. I started work on catching up on the photos and log, but before long I gave up as the temperature soared over 40°C in the boat and 46°C outside. Gave Mike a hand to put the bike on the front deck rather than on the roof. Really glad I’d cooked dinner earlier as to cook anything in this heat would be beyond the pale. At midnight it was still 35°C in the bedroom, so I put cushions on the floor and slept there. Mike braved the heat in the bedroom, heat doesn’t affect him like it does me.

Tuesday 20th June 2017 Chamouilley to Ecriennes. 29.4kms 12 locks

Liftbridge and old railway swingbridge at Marnaval

13.2°C Very hot and sunny again (Max 36.7°C outside and 33°C in the cabin. All the cruisers that had stayed overnight had gone before we started getting ready to move. Chatted with the guy off the DB who was staying for a month to get some work done on his boat. Left at 8.50am. I phoned Vitry to book us a lock keeper, I asked if we needed one today, the lady said yes, for the liftbridge at Marnaval. Lock 56 Güe (3.10m) was empty, so we

Reflection in the gymnasium window. St Dizier

had a short wait while it filled. There was an interesting Z-bend under the railway which has traffic lights at the far side for uphill traffic so that they didn’t meet downhill traffic on the blind bends. Jets taking off from St Dizier’s airbase were very loud as we travelled the 2.1kms pound to lock 57 Marnaval (3.20m). Two cruisers were coming up so we had a short wait until they cleared before we went down. A young lady with a VNF van worked the black liftbridge below the lock from a cabin. Beyond it the railway swingbridge remains forever open to boat traffic. 4kms into St Dizier. A narrow (abt

New waterfront in St Dizier

3.5m beam) Belgian-flagged tug went past heading uphill. St Dizier’s waterfront had had a makeover with all new buildings facing on to the canal, new shops and a cinema behind the quay, where the cruiser that had been moored in front of us the night before was now moored. Opposite was a new sports centre and Mike managed to take a good reflection photo of the boat in the gymnasium’s big windows. Lock 58 St Dizier (3.20m) was very slow emptying. 1.8kms to the next past a large factory, YTO on the chimney – on

Site of marina in St Dizier

the gate it said Yanmar Tractor (Case Tractor’s smelly factory used to be where the new sports centre is) and next to it was a foundry, Focast, which was making a right old pong. Down 59 La Noue (3.10m) and turned sharp right on to a long, long straight section, 18kms before the first bend! To our left was the empty basin which used to house a pretty good marina many years ago. The perimeter fence of the air base was right next to the canal for about 2.5kms. 1.8kms to lock 60 Hœricourt (3.20m) a large Dutch steel cruiser was waiting below to go up. 2.3kms to lock 61

Anti-aircraft lorry at air base in St Dizier

Hallignicourt (3.20m) Mike took photos of a camouflaged lorry with a rotating radar dish (and a German symbol on the side of the lorry) which looked like some sort of surface to air anti-aircraft missile launcher. 1.5kms (and yet more foul smells) to lock 62 La Garenne (3.10m). The lady of the lock house said bonjour from the shade at her front door. 62 was also very slow to empty. The afternoon Eurofighter take-offs were pretty loud. 2.4kms to lock 63 Perthes

Donkey dozing in the heat.

(3.30m). Three adolescent lads in swimming shorts were playing about around the lock, sitting on the lock gates as they opened. One asked me a question and I didn’t understand him, so I asked him to repeat it – still couldn’t fathom what he was asking. He gave up. So did I. Below the lock there were parked gypsy caravans, so that must be where the kids came from, wondered why they weren’t at school. 1.4kms and checking for moorings but finding nothing, not even pilings with deep enough water. Down lock 64 Sapiginicourt (3.20m) and the canal became weedy after seeing none

Tonga unloading below Orconte lock -
 commercial activity again at last!

since before St Dizier, in consequence there were lots of dragonflies and damselflies and a Kingfisher flew past – hadn’t seen one for ages and then a tern diving for fish, not seen one of those either. I made sandwiches for lunch on the long 3.4kms pound. Down lock 65 Bruyère and, after the gates closed behind us as we left, two red lights came on – en panne! Weed in the gates? 2kms to lock 66 Orconte (3.30m). A VNF pusher tug Neptunius was moored at the end of the (empty, and very nice but no satellite TV due to trees) quay

Moored above lock 68 Ecriennes

for plaisance, which had a large sign forbidding péniches from mooring there. Below the lock by the silo, péniche Tonga from Sens was being unloaded by diggers into bulk cargo lorries. 2.1kms to lock 67 Matignicourt (3.10m). A VNF van went down the towpath but didn’t stop. Lock 67’s house was all bricked up. A fisherman was fishing just below the lock. Another 2kms and we were at the picnic quay above lock 68 Ecriennes. Nice mooring, partially in shade, but one disadvantage – again no satellite TV. It was just after 4pm when we tied up. Three quarters of an hour later cruiser a cruiser that moors at Condé went past heading uphill, starting their holidays – they asked if we were on our way back to Condé. Yes, we’ll see you later in the year. Tonga, now empty, went past heading downhill at 5.20pm. Half an hour later, loaded boat La Paix went past heading uphill – the crew spoke in passing - they’d probably been past us dozens of times while we’ve been moored at Condé. 

Monday 19th June 2017 Joinville to Chamouilley 23.5kms 11 locks

Weed gathering machine below lock 48 Curel

11.7°C Very hot and sunny. I phoned Vitry control to tell them where we were going today, (not knowing if any of the liftbridges still needed VNF staff to work them, as it happens they didn’t) as we set off from Joinville at 8.45am. Already getting very hot. There was a new mooring, a halte nautique with water and electric a bit further on, a cruiser and a Belgian DB were moored there. About 100m further on there were four boats moored by a restaurant,

Moorings at Joinville from lk 45 Rongeant

two pointing uphill and two downhill. Into lock 45 Rongeant (3.20m) which was already full. The lockhouse garden was full of faded gnomes. 1.9kms to the next, lock 46 Bussey (3.20m). The canal was getting even more weedy. Lock 46 was empty and it was the first lock we’d come across without any rods to lift (we’d taken to using the “bassiné” button on the zapper anyway instead of the rods as there are bollards in the right place on the opposite wall to the rods. Suddenly there were lots of clegs (horseflies), so out came the swatters and the repellent with deet. Strangely, there were no

Liftbridge at Autigny

more of them about for the rest of the day. Less weed on the 2.2kms pound to lock 47 Autigny (2.80m) the lock was full and again had no rods. The lockhouse was lived in but the front door facing the lock had been bricked up. 2.4kms to lock 48 Curel (3.10m). A liftbridge had been automated, operated with a hanging pole to twist, the road crossed the railway to our right and the Marne to our left. The bridge was very slow to close after we’d passed through it. The liftbridge just before lock 48 worked automatically with the lock. There was quite a gathering

Collapsed barn by lk 49 Breuil

of men on the lockside, VNF, other workmen and police. Below the lock a VNF man was driving a weed cutter, he had a very sensible parasol to keep the sun off. 1.9kms to the next. Getting very hot 34°C before 11am. Lock 49 Breuil (2.90m) was so full it was overflowing on to the grass. 2.1kms to lock 50 Chevillon (3.30m) DB Domingot was moored below the lock with an “A Vendre” (for sale) sign on it. Looking very smart, it was moored for years near to Condé in the layby before Billy-le-Grand tunnel at Vaudemange. 2.4kms to lock 51, Fontaines (2.70m). The liftbridge above 51 at Sommeville was under re-construction. 2.3kms to the next. Below 51,

Sommeville bridge undergoing reconstruction

the first liftbridge had gone and the second was automatic and worked in conjunction with lock 52 Bayard (3.4m). Lunch on the 3kms pound to lock 53 Bienville (3.5m). The lockhouse was bricked up and used as the local youth playground as there was rubbish everywhere. Again the lock was so full of water it was overflowing the lock sides. 2.3kms to the next, lock 54 Euville (3.50m) also overflowing. 1.3kms to the next. We passed an uphill boat, a cruiser with noisy engine. Down lock 55, Chamouilley (3.10m) our last of the day. We moored on a

Patton tank at Euville museum

long quay that had been recently refurbished and used to be a hirebase (Locaboat if we remember correctly). There were two boats moored, a large old Dutch DB from Meppel and a Swiss cruiser.

Canal-side bakery at Chamouilley

We landed gently behind the cruiser at 2.40pm. Later, another cruiser arrived and moored in front of us. Plus another a bit later.

Moored on refurbished quay at Chamouilley

Saturday 17th June 2017 Vouécourt to Joinville 26.7kms 10 locks

Crown vetch flowering on canal bank nr Villiers

7.6°C A much cooler night. Sunny with a clear blue sky first thing, but with a cold wind, clouding over by mid-morning. A French cruiser went past heading uphill around 8.30am. We set off at 9.20am. It was 25°C outside, but soon cooled down as we went through shade of the trees on the 2.5kms to the first lock and then the thermometer read

Ooh, la,la! Naughty gnomes!

19°C. We had a tarmac towpath on our left and a minor road on the right, no traffic on either. Down lock 35 Buxières (3.40m) A cruiser with a Kiwi flag was waiting below the lock to go uphill – the crew didn’t respond to Mike’s “Good Morning!” Good start. Two men were about to set up to fish below lock 35, they waved and said bonjour. 2.6kms to the next lock. More fishermen – it’s Saturday. Forested hills to our right. A group of fishermen were fishing in a very weedy

Goods train by lock 39 Gudmont

winding hole just before the town of Froncles. There were four boats on the mooring, an ex-Connoiseur hireboat - UK flagged, a small Danish yacht, a small Luxe DB UK flagged and a “dead” cruiser. There were a couple of gaps left on the quay for small boats. There were masses of campervans parked by the quay beyond the boats. On to lock 36 Froncles (3.30m) where there was a VNF depot above the lock. A couple of gongoozlers watched us lock through from the tail end bridge. The canal continued on a low embankment overlooking cows in a meadow along the banks of the Marne. A water rat swam across the canal dragging a long reed behind it. 3kms to lock 27 Provenchères (3.30m) a

River Rognon joins the Marne by lk 41 Mussey

VNF van stood on the lockside next to a lived in house. A British barge was waiting below the lock to go up it. 3rd boat of the day! I thought it was a shortened Sheffield keel but Mike disagreed as he thought the bows were too rounded, he was right it was a new-build. It had clouded over so Mike took our sunshade down. The wind was very chilly so I put my fleece on. 2.5kms to the next, 38 Villiers (3.30m) The lockhouse had lots of statues and gnomes in its garden. A large Dutch cruiser

Weed. Abv lk 42 St Urbain

was waiting below 38, that’s number four! Ten minutes later number five appeared, a Swedish yacht going very slowly – it had a sign on its bows to show its draught of 1.7m hoping it could keep to the middle of the channel which is only 1.80m. 2.7kms to lock 39 Gudmont (3.80m) The liftbridge at the top end of the lock worked automatically with the lock. A goods train was parked on the track alongside the canal. Mike counted 16 wagons full of stone, 70 tonnes to each wagon making a total of 1,120 tonnes. 2.9kms to lock 40 Rouvroy (3.90m) I made sandwiches for lunch. The canal was becoming more and more weedy, but cristal clear so you could see the bottom and the fish – lots of them, including some whoppers. 1.70kms to

The town of Joinville

lock 41 Mussey (3.20m) The liftbridge at the top end of the lock was an old one, manually wound and was kept open all the time for canal traffic. There was an aqueduct over the Marne before the lock chamber. Two fishermen were looking down into the river, fish spotting. Mike went to take a photo of the junction with the river Rognon from the aqueduct. I made a cuppa. The weed was getting worse, having to spin it off the blades in reverse every now and again. A coypu swam across the canal as we set off on the 2.8kms pound to lock 42 St Urbain (3.50m) A long straight pound, masses of weed and some very large fish sunbathing in the shallow edges. Big fields

Moored in Joinville

of barley, wheat and grazing cows along the edges of the Marne. 1.6kms to lock 43 Bonneval (3.40m) We could see several radio masts on the hill overlooking Joinville and kept fingers crossed for a good Internet connection. Another long straight pound, 2.8kms long into Joinville. The towpath became more in use again by walkers and cyclists as we approached the town. The water continued to be cristal clear, full of weeds and fish. The old stone railway bridge across the canal now carried the busy N67 trunk road. Down lock 44 Joinville (3.20m) and into a short cutting with high stone walls on each side next to a busy road. We stopped by a road bridge and blocks of flats at 3.45pm and moored next to some pilings, an old quay with deep water. Someone had hammered in some bent bits of metal to tie to. Mike went to take photos of the boat from the bridge and a lady who lived locally came to question him – the usual questions, where was he from, where was he going, etc, etc  - and “are you married?”, twice!! :)

Thursday 15th June 2017 Chaumont to Vouécourt 19.4kms 10 lock 1 tunnel

VNF men doing some piling work Chaumont

13.3°C Very hot and sunny, clear blue skies first thing, then clouds building up by midday and sharp showers of rain. Thunderstorms had been forecast but missed us. When we set off at 8.55am the VNF were working opposite where we’d moored, pushing short lengths of piling into the bank using a digger bucket while two men held each metal pile in position. There were five men, a grass-cutting machine, a digger and a small lorry to do

Condes tunnel, aqueduct and liftbridge

the work. A short distance to lock 25 Relancourt (3.50m) A VNF van had gone past on the towpath before we got there. Down the lock on to a longer pound of 3.4kms. Past a silo quay which looked disused, it hadn’t been used for loading grain into boats in a long time. Before the next lock 26 Condés (3.70m) was the tunnel of the same name and a liftbridge, all of which worked automatically after Mike went on to the front deck to zap. The bridge lifted and we went over another aqueduct over the Marne and into the tunnel, only 308m long but unusual as it is a passing tunnel - wide enough for two péniches

Condes tunnel looking back at the liftbridge

to pass. Down the lock, which had a very nice house and garden on to a short 800m pound leading to lock 27 Brethenay (3.0m) which also had a very smart lockhouse. A VNF van was parked on the towpath as men were strimming the edges of the towpath. 1.9kms to lock 28 Mouillerys (3.70m) No house. A large VNF van was on the lockside, its driver came out of the lock cabin and drove off, followed by a small VNF van down the towpath. 1.8kms to lock 29 Raucourt (3.80m) A Red

Lock 27 Brethenay and liftbridge

Admiral butterfly decided it liked Mike and sat on his head, his nose, then his hand. So he gave it some of the fruit squash he was drinking and it loved it. Transferred it to me and more fruit squash and took photos of it slurping while we were waiting for the lock to empty. Along the 3.5kms to lock 30 Bologne (3.40m) there were some beautiful houses. Below the lock there was a picnic mooring with a concrete quay and steps up to an open fronted building where there were picnic tables. Wow!

Horse with fly defence headgear

We passed a smoky Dutch cruiser going uphill, first boat in two days’ travelling. Clouds started building up towards midday. Strangely, although the cruiser had just come up, lock 30 was empty and it had to refill when we zapped. Into the lock over another aqueduct over the infant river Marne. A young man in a VNF van stopped to ask us the usual questions, where are we stopping, etc. 920m to the next lock 31 Roôcourt (3.40m). It was full, so

Church tower at Raucourt

the gates opened just after we zapped. The red roofed village of Roôcourt was spread out along the valley, with a church part way up the hill behind. 2kms to lock 32 Viéville (3.40m) also still full. 2.8kms to the next lock. In the town of Viéville there is a liftbridge and a mooring. A keeper (the lad in the van) worked the new liftbridge from a cabin alongside it (the old one had been automatic). The moorings were full, one “dead” cruiser, two “dead” DBs and a two visiting cruisers which were occupied, plus three campervans. Lock 33 Granvaux (3.40m) was approached via another

Red Admiral butterfly slurping fruit squash

shallow cutting. A couple on bikes paused by the lock to chat to Mike in French (we thought they were most likely Dutch due to their accents) they didn’t know that heavy rain and thunderstorms had been forecast for this afternoon. 1.9kms to Vouécourt (3.50m). Large fields of wheat stretched up the valley sides on our left to the forested hills beyond. The canal went into Vouécourt on an embankment higher than the village houses

Moored boats and liftbridge at Vieville

into the lock. It started to rain and it poured down – it could have held off for half an hour and let us get tied up! It had stopped when we arrived at the quay. There was 20m long concrete with a wooden decked top which was halfway up our windows (ideal for getting the bike back on the roof after Mike has moved the car on to Vitry tomorrow) and bollards set back from the quay by about 10m. Some local resident had made some flowerpot – type men to decorate the bank by the mooring, amusing miniature fishermen! It

Moored at Vouécourt

was 2.10pm and very hot and humid. Later it poured down again several times but the main storms missed us. When the rain stopped we had a good breeze through the front doors which cooled us down until dusk when we had to close the doors due to mossies and tiny moths. We both had an afternoon nap again – it’s not our age, it's the fresh air!

Miniature fishermen at Vouécourt