Monday 8th May 2017 Soing to Gray 40kms 5 locks

Chateau de Ray

8.7°C Grey skies, damp but we only had one shower of light rain. There was a Le Boat hireboat about 100m downstream of us, tucked into the bank. There was enough space on the landing stage, wonder why it stopped there? Mike put 6€ donation in the box for water and electric after he’d topped up our water tank. Set off just before 9am. Flow on the river about 1.5kph, normally around 0.5kph so not much of an increase in flow although the level had come up about 6”. About 6kms to the

lock 12, Ferrièrres-lès-Ray - now a floodlock

first lock of the day. First 3kms were back down the weirstream, passing Soing lock, then about 1km to the dérivation de Charentenay and a further 2kms on the canal to lock 11 Charentenay. Down 3.3m and there was a British-flagged DB waiting below, getting in a tangle with the hanging pole! For the first time ever we were directed by the VNF signs to use the derivation de Ferrièrres-lès-Ray (canal section) - we’d always had to use the river previously. OK, it’s shorter. Quite a flow through the flood lock, which used to be lock 12, Ferrièrres-lès-Ray, it was sloping sided and equipped

A narrowboat! Moored with the cruisers in the basin at Seveux

with a floating pontoon to tie to and rods to operate it in times of flood. We passed an uphill hireboat in the canal and another on the river leading to the dérivation de Savoyeux. The layby at Seveux was filled with boats and a hirebase of Sâone Plaisance. There was another hireboat in front going through the Savoyeux tunnel (643m) which is controlled by lights. We’d got a green light so we followed it through the tunnel, which, like the previous tunnel,

View back through Savoyeux tunnel

was lit throughout with sodium lamps. Neither tunnel had a towpath, which I found interesting as my 1960’s French canals book said there was a towpath the length of the river and towage was by diesel tractors. So how did they haul the boats through? There is a path over the top so that would suggest they walked horses across like we did on UK canals. The lock at Savoyeux was keeper operated and we shared with the Le Boat hireboat we’d seen in the tunnel. Down 3.6m on to a 10.5kms river reach. The hireboat in front did a pirouette mid-river and went back upstream – probably

A cormorant perched in a tree

looking for somewhere to stop and have lunch. We had sandwiches on the move as usual. A short canal section (dérivation de Vereux) lead to lock 14, back to DIY automatic and we dropped down a further 1.68m. The lock house was inhabited and there was a very modern looking lock cabin. 8.5kms of gently meandering river, passing several small islands on our way to lock 15 Rigny. There was a boat in the lock, we could see the flashing light above the control rods.

Moored on the quay at Gray

The crew put ropes on and then did nothing! Mike thought they were waiting for another boat – no signs of one. Then someone came out of the lock house and lifted the blue rod, then went back in the house. It was a pénichette hireboat probably just set off from Gray and hadn’t listened to the lock working instructions very carefully. As I lifted the rod to work lock 15 the hireboat who’d gone back upriver appeared in the distance, sorry, too late. Down 1.86m on to the 4.4kms reach to our last

And for all our friends who love wildlife -
this is a water measurer- body length 15mm - he/she eats mosquito larva -
long may they live and prosper

lock of the day. Past the hire base and the VNF offices, wishing the fishermen bonjour and bonne chance, into lock 16 Gray and down another 1.69m. One DB (UK-flagged) and a hireboat on the long quay. Winded to point our bows upstream and tied on rings on the low quay that was covered in dried mud from the winter high water levels. It was 3.30pm. Nice to have the phone and Internet working at their best.