Lobbes to Viesville 30 July to 3 August After John and Deanne left us, we took a few days in Lobbes to get a few jobs done and relax. I was feeling much better with only a sling rather than a massive uncomfortable cast. We set off again on Friday to Abbaye d'Aulne and then left the Sambre on Saturday. We moved the boat on Wednesday morning, after another barge left, so the we could take on water and electricity. In the afternoon we caught a train to Thuin to watch the end of the Tour of Wallonia bike race. The race went up the steep hill into the main street of Thuin 3 times before finally finishing, so we had plenty of chances to see the cyclists and support and advertising vehicles too. On Thursday I had a walk around the town of Lobbes, seeing many things I hadn't seen before. On Friday we set off to Abbaye d'Aulne, and ended up staying in exactly the same spot as previously. As my birthday was the next day we went out for a delightful meal in a restaurant near our mooring that some friends had recommended. The highlight was our entrees. We had heard that the final and largest lock on the Haute Sambre was only operating once a day, so after checking with the local lock keeper we set off at 10am, so we would be sure to be there when it operated some time after lunch. We got there at 11:30 and were told by the lock keeper there that it would be operating at 1:30pm. So we had a leisurely lunch and had a look around. There were 3 boats waiting on the other side. One of the owners had told us that he arrived on Thursday and was only coming through on Saturday as a commercial had gone through on Friday using the only lock operation. We then passed through the industrial wasteland of Charleroi and 3 more locks before we reached our mooring at Viesville after 5pm. Before dinner we had a walk of a couple of kilometres into the nearest town, where we had a drink and chatted to some locals in FRENCH !. So we left the pleasant river Sambre and I had another birthday doing a lot more cruising than I would have liked. Thanks to all those who sent me birthday wishes.
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AuthorWe are sharing stories about and travels on our barge Moondance. Archives
August 2023
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