Ivan and I are continuing our break from work on the Canal du Briare. We’re living aboard Laura the boat and travelling along the canals and rivers of France. In this post, you’ll hear about our favourite village, see ancient ingenuity that makes frogs sing, as well as Ivan’s experience rescuing a baby deer. What a hero!
We’ve only got a few months left of this break before we head back to Australia. So we’re making the most of every day. The weather is still a bit changeable but there’s plenty of baby animals to tell us that spring has sprung!
Cruising along at a leisurely pace
There’s nothing fast about life aboard Laura. The below video shows what it’s like travelling from town to town across the 7,000km of waterways in France. We normally travel about 20 km per day over about 3-4 hours. It depends on how many locks we encounter. We stop when there’s a nice place to tie up or when we meet interesting people. It’s definitely life in the slow lane.
Fascinating history everywhere
Ivan and I love visiting historical sites and of course they are everywhere in France. We especially enjoy visiting places that combine ancient history and ingenuity with beauty, such as the Canal du Midi. So, we were thrilled to visit Rogny-les-Sept-Ecluses, which is a village famous for it’s historical chain of seven locks. We spent the night moored up in the town and wandered up to the historical site.
The locks were built in the 1600’s to allow boats travelling along the Canal du Briare to rise 24 metres. Just think of the engineering required to lift boats with all their cargo 24 metres high 400 years ago. It’s incredible. The locks are no longer in use, except as a tourist destination. They are also used by frogs who sing to each other, with their voices reverberating off the stone walls.
Our favourite village so far
Everywhere we go in France we judge towns on whether or not we’d live there. Not that we’re thinking of moving here permanently, but hey, you never know. Maybe one day. We’ve probably got 15 places that are on our list but the one that captured our hearts recently is Chatillon-Coligny. Here’s a glimpse of this lovely town that is along the Canal du Briare.
So what makes Chatillon-Coligny and all the other little towns we’ve loved so special? Friendly locals, beautiful stone architecture, a weekly market with fresh food and vegetables and a thriving city centre with at least one boulangerie. And of course a nice place to tie up our boat.
Ivan saves a baby deer
Sadly there’s been a stretch of canal where we’ve seen lots of dead animals, especially young deer. The fawns have all been very small with short legs and have obviously become trapped in the steep-sided canals. Ivan and I both vowed that if we ever saw a fawn trying to escape this part of the canal we’d do everything we could to save it. Well one day, we got this opportunity.
I was walking along the canal one morning when I saw the young deer (below) in the water. It was swimming from side to side in the canal looking for a way out but could not find it. Apologies for the filming as it’s a very rough. It gives you an idea, though, of how hard it would be for a fawn to escape.
When I realised the deer was trapped I did what everyone in my situation would do – I called Ivan. He’s so practical in situations like this. Well he didn’t let me or the deer down. He rode up on his bike with a long bit of rope, made a lasso, went over to where the fawn was standing in the canal, gently lowered the rope over his head (he was definitely a he) and together we hauled him out on to the bank.
The fawn bucked and screamed. And afterwards Ivan had to roll him onto his side to slide the rope off his neck. What a horrible experience for all of us but very rewarding. When he was free he bounded away and we felt great. Ivan is officially my hero for his quick thinking and rope tying abilities not to mention his strength. That fawn has a story now that his mates will never believe!
Peace and quiet in the countryside
Whilst we love visiting towns and the occasional city, every now and again Ivan and I love getting out in the middle of nowhere and spending a night or two. This is easy to do when you live on a canal boat in France. We always sleep well in these anchorages.
So life is good. It’s peaceful. And we’re fully immersed in a different culture and a different way of living. It’s a far cry from our busy lives back in Australia, but that’s not a bad thing for a complete contrast. If you ever get the chance, I’d highly recommend life aboard a canal boat in France.
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