La Pente d’Eau, Montech

 Built in 1974 when water transport was still very active, two diesel electric engines attached by a beam went up or down a slope about 13 meters high pushing a pool of water to carry a boat. To let the boats enter or exit, a huge hydraulically controlled, watertight gate was lifted. The idea was to eliminate the five locks on the main canal and save about an hour for commercial operators. The whole operation didn’t last long, however, as a series of breakdowns put it out of service in 2009 and it is now a tourist attraction with an “interesting” paint job.

The Wiki Page

The two locomotives with a peniche between on the slope

Montauban and Back, May 5-7

 We arrived in the Montauban Marina shortly after lunchtime. Luckily, since the marina is a good hike from town, there is a collection of restaurants and snack bars right at the port so we could grab something to eat. A quick conversation with Lennie and Di resulted in a Thursday night dinner invitation for more of Di’s delicious curry so we were set for our visit to town.
Montauban was founded in the 12th century where the Tarn and Tescou Rivers meet and was originally surrounded by defensive walls. They restricted the growth of the city, however, and new neighborhoods and churches were soon built outside. During the Religious Wars of the 1560’s, the churches were burned and dismantled with the materials used to build new city walls. The city returned to the Catholic Church in the late 1600’s and a new cathedral was built.

 

 

The Pont Vieux, built over the Tarn in the early 14th century
with the steeple of Saint Jacques in the background

 

 

The interior of the church of Saint Jacques, built and rebuilt many times between the 13th and 18th centuries

 

Place Nationale, the heart of town

Not wanting to spend five days in town before Tim and Christine were scheduled to leave (we wanted to be near a train station), and being pretty far from town, we decided to return to Castelsarrasin, spending two short days underway. We didn’t leave until about 11 Saturday morning for the 9 locks up the Canal de Montech and then five more locks up alongside the Pente d’eau to reach a bankside mooring in the small village of Escatalens about 3 pm. Then it was just 3 locks and 2 hours to Castelsarrasin. Monday morning my first guests would be on the train to Nimes and my next guest, Kevin Murray would be arriving in the afternoon for an extended stay.

 

 On the way to Escatalens, a “Green Tunnel”

 

 

First Guests, April 30-May 5

My first guests, long time friends Tim and Christine from Oak View, Ca. arrived Sunday, April 30, escaping the May Day madness in Paris. They would be staying for a week, leaving Monday, May 8. Since Monday was a holiday and the canal locks were closed, we wouldn’t be departing until Tuesday. That gave us a day to wander the streets of Castelsarrasin.

The obligatory first stop was one of the churches in town, Saint-Saveur. Construction originally began in 961 when the town first appeared on maps, later as Castro Sarraceno. It was completely rebuilt between 1245 and 1270 but has undergone several renovations in the 16th, and 19th centuries, with the front steps and porch added in 1901.

The ceilings were tastefully decorated.

A majestic organ

We also got a good laugh from the name of this street. We’re not sure what happens there but it must stay there….

Tuesday morning at the crack of 9 we headed down through one lock to the conveniently place pontoon right outside the big grocery store. It’s always a great thing when you can roll the shopping cart right down to the boat. Shopping complete we turned around and headed back up the canal for our first destination, Montauban.

We had to travel through 9 locks going up, the last 5 in quick succession alongside the Pente d’eau ( more on that later) before turning off onto the side canal that travels down to the River Tarn and the city of Montauban. Not wanting to wear ourselves out on the first days underway, we stopped about 3:30 at a small mooring in the hamlet of Lacourt St. Pierre. A small grocery/bar/tabac, a church and a nice shady park were all that was there but we decided we weren’t in a big hurry so we decided to spend Wednesday there and more on to Montauban on Thursday.

The Lacourt church. those bells rang every half hour from 7 am to 7 pm.

Thursday morning we were planning to get underway about 10 as the locks don’t open until 9:30 when Tim mentioned that a big boat was coming down the canal. It turned out to be good friends Lenny and Di on Elysium. We first met them in Briare in 2021 and then we tag teamed our way down to the Garonne last year with many raucous evenings. They were also on their way to Montauban. We would meet them there.

Back to France, April 25-May 1

 

Tuesday morning my friend Ines drove me to the airport shuttle bus and, after a relaxing hour or so in the airport lounge and lunch, Air France whisked me across North America and the Atlantic Ocean to Paris. Arriving around 11 am I only had an hour and a half to make the transfer to the flight to Toulouse which turned out to be in another terminal requiring a bus ride. Then the security people decided my backpack required a more thorough check and I thought I was going to miss the connection. Luckily it all worked out and I made the flight, landing in Toulouse at 2 pm. Unfortunately, due to the tight connection, my bag didn’t arrive at the same time, but a courier managed to find me for it’s delivery the next evening and all was well.

Oldtimer was something of a mess but it really only took one day to clean the outside. However, due to the chaotic departure last year, there was quite a bit of cleaning on the inside yet to do. Just like housework.

I was also greeted by a Fete Foraine just across the canal. The real fun began with the carnival midway cranking up starting Wednesday about 3. Luckily I have earplugs because the noise is pretty bad. They begin their day around 3, go a little quieter around dinner time and then crank back up until a little after 11. Between the earplugs and jet lag I’ve been able to deal.

They’re lined up for the “Turn It On” ride.

Picture from my back deck.

So far everything has been good with the boat. The engine started a little reluctantly, not surprising considering it’s been more than 7 months since it last ran, and when it finally caught it ran fine without too much smoke. Both the electric toilet and the hot water heater worked without a hitch. The wheel turned the rudder and the bow thruster did its thrusting thing without complaint. The horn even worked!

I have put the boat up for sale through H20, the brokers that sold Odysseus for us and through whom we bought Oldtimer. https://h2ofrance.com/for-sale/aakship/ There is a saying that the two happiest days in a boat owners life are the day they buy a boat and the day they sell it but that will definitely not be the case for me. It was a very difficult decision; the completed paperwork sat on my desk for two weeks before I could bring myself to send it in but I really can’t see a way for me to keep the boat that doesn’t involve waaaay too much work and stress. (If you look at the listing, those are not pictures of the interior decoration as it is now. I wasn’t able to provide inside picture for the listing as I wasn’t here yet so they used ones from the previous listing.)

I managed to put together a pretty full cruise schedule with family and friends until I leave in late July. My first guests, Tim and Christine, who have sailed with me on Oldtimer before, arrive Sunday the 30th, escaping the possibility of May 1 chaos in Paris. They will be here for a week, then I will be joined by Kevin Murray, a guy from Australia I met through the Dutch Barge Association forum, who will be aboard for at least 3 weeks. He was supposed to be followed by an old friend, Yvonne, also from Australia whom we met in 2009,  but she just fell and broke her hand so will be unable to make the trip. I informed Kevin and it sounds like he may be up to stay aboard if it works out. We’re about to become very well acquainted! 

Since the canals are closed for the May Day holiday, We won’t be getting underway until Tuesday at the earliest. I think our first destination will be Montauban, back to the east about 25 k. After that, who knows?

I realized this week that in all the turmoil of this fall I failed to post the map and statistics for this years voyage.

I’ll take care of that now.

 

As in the past, you should be able to click on the image for a larger one. I did not draw all the pretty lines this year, just the stopping places.

We travelled 

1190 kilometers

247 locks

206 hours on the engine in 67 travel days.

And an update.

I have had several people contact me for the trip this year. If you’re interested please let me know soon as I plan to finalize plans in the next couple of weeks.

The Future of Oldtimer

 I hope this finds you all well and that you had a happy holiday time. I traveled up to Portland to enjoy Christmas with Cory, Darwin and Audrey. There’s nothing much better than a three year old at Christmas.

Now on to future plans…

I have decided I am going to have to sell Oldtimer. I would have a hard time cruising alone and I really don’t want to do that anyway so the barge will be going on the market.

Before that, however, I have several small projects to finish as I left the boat in a hurry last October. Also, I would love to take one last cruise.

If you have thought about taking a canal cruise, now would be your opportunity to spend a week or so on the French waterways. I envision a trip starting around the beginning of May and finishing up the beginning of July. The weather should still be ok and the waterways not too crowded. Traveling would be limited to the area between Bordeaux and Toulouse on the Garonne Canal, maybe including trips onto the Baise and Tarn Rivers.

If this is something that would interest you, get in touch for details. I’m just starting to make plans now and I would love to hear from you.

Stay safe,

Don

November 8, 2022

 This is a post I never, ever expected to have to write.

From Moissac we spent a couple of days on the Tarn bankside in the trees. We returned to Moissac, travelled further up the canal to Pommevic and visited another of the “Most Beautiful Villages in France”, Auvillar, a 6 k bike ride away from the canal. From there we turned around for one more day on the river and then returned to Castelsarrasin on Sept. 2. Oldtimer would spend the winter there.

Cathy Jo had been feeling a little fatigued and had not much of an appetite since about the middle of August but we began the pre-winter chores. She would work about a half day and then rest. We tried to get a doctor’s appointment for a checkup but as we were unable to book an appointment before our departure she decided to “tough it out” until our return to the US.

By the 20th, though, she couldn’t get out of bed. Valerie, one of the Port Capitaines, called an ambulance and Cathy Jo was taken to the local hospital. By Saturday she had been transferred to the big hospital in Toulouse where she was diagnosed with leukemia.

After 5 weeks of treatment, the doctors in Toulouse judged her stable enough to fly and our travel insurance company arranged repatriation flights, complete with an accompanying doctor and nurse, ambulance rides at each end and wheel chairs through the airports. She arrived at our local hospital late Tuesday night, October 25 and was checked in for evaluation and decisions on further treatment.

Complications began almost immediately as late Thursday night she developed an infection. It was just a typical e coli bacterial infection but since her immune system was so weak, she was immediately transferred to the ICU. 

Despite all the doctors and nurses could do, she continued to decline and she died early Wednesday morning, Nov. 2.

I guess the blog ends here, pending decisions about what to do with Oldtimer. I’ve lost my traveling companion of the last 44 years. We had a great life and when her illness began and we realized the prognosis was not good she did tell me she had no regrets, for which I am grateful.

Hug those closest to you and remind them you love them.

Our first trip to France, 2005

Working on Odysseus, 2007

Veurne, 2008

Veurne again, 2017

Portland, Oregon, 2020

Ampuis, 2022