Ivan and I have been cruising at our just-faster-than-walking pace in Laura the boat along the Canal du Briare and the Canal du Loing in France. We visited many ancient towns and travelled through gorgeous green countryside where cuckoos abound. This is definitely life in the slow lane.
Cuckoos
You’ll need to turn your volume up for this one but if you listen closely you’ll hear a cuckoo. We’ve heard lots of them recently on our travels through the countryside. We haven’t seen one yet as they are a bit shy but they are delightful to hear. And incidentally they sound just like the clocks that bear their name. Who’d have thought.
A detour into Chateau-Landon
The town of Chateau-Landon is a few kilometres away from the Canal du Briare but is definitely worth a visit. We went there for a ride on our trusty bikes and spent a delightful afternoon poking around. We had a glass of wine in the main square where we met a local who told us some of the fascinating history of this ancient town that dates back over 1,500 years. Chateau-Landon has housed royalty and its basilica was a religious pilgrimage site. Apparently the faithful journeyed up the hill to the village on their knees. No thanks, it was hard enough on a bike!
Montargis
Next stop on the Canal du Briare was the town of Montargis. It’s known as the “little Venice of the Gatinais” because of the waterways crisscrossing the town. And there are no fewer than 131 bridges.
There are several locks right in the centre with lots of spectators watching the process. We always try to act cool when there’s people watching us go through a lock. It’s important to pull out our best rope throwing and boat manoeuvring skills whilst trying desperately not to stuff up. It’s a little bit stressful when there’s lots of people watching, but we secretly love the attention.
Speaking of locks, check out this massive boat fitting into this small space with only centimetres to spare.
The marina in Montargis is brand new with hardly any boats so we mostly had the place to ourselves. It looked lovely at night and was nice and quiet.
Here’s a few more photos of Montargis. The centre of town is quite lovely and there are plenty of restaurants and cafes. The Canal du Briare ends at Montargis and becomes the Canal du Loing.
Nemours
Now this is a very lovely town on the Canal du Loing where we ended up spending four nights. I’d highly recommend a visit to Nemours as there’s lots of history to explore, beautiful old buildings and an incredible market (more on that below). There’s an old water mill that still works and plenty of gardens and parks. But whatever you do, don’t feed the ducks!
Buying food from the Nemours market
There is no better way to buy food than at a proper French market. Most towns and villages have at least one per week where you can buy everything from fruit and vegetables, meats, flowers, bread and cheese and even things like mattresses, antiques and clothing. Here’s the Nemours market which is held twice a week on the banks of the river.
Our favourite stalls are the fruit and vegetable stands where the shopkeepers choose the items for you according to when you’ll be using the produce. For instance if you’re buying an avocado or a melon, the shopkeeper will ask what day you’ll be eating it and will choose one that will be perfectly ripe on the day. If you buy two melons they will mark the one that is to be eaten first. And if you buy meat from a butcher they will generally ask you what dish you are preparing and then tell you how to cook it.
A trip to the markets is a wonderful experience and a great place to practice speaking French. The food is fresh and in season and market-day is always a big event in any town. You can also pat a nice friendly dog or two and no one bats an eye if you have a glass of wine in the morning. Vive la France!
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