Nevers, Chevenon, Fleury-sur-Loire, Decize 8-14 June 2023 At Nevers we were meeting up with our good friends Steve and Michelle who were riding towards us from Basle. Some of the photos in this blog were provided by Steve and Michelle Eeles. Our first full day in Nevers we did a few jobs around the boat while waiting for Steve and Michelle to arrive. After they'd had a chance to catch their breath and have lunch they set off with Howard to the Supermarket, to make sure we bought things which suited their dietary requirements. The next day we had a cycle around the town of Nevers, and then lunch at a lovely restaurant. The next day we set off towards Decize - our last leg on the Canal Lateral à la Loire. Our first stop was Chevenon which was a very quiet spot. Michelle had a good turn on the helm and in the afternoon, she and Steve went for a ride to the ruins of a chateau and Howard went for a small ride around the town. I was still sufferring the after-effects of my cold so I had a quiet afternoon. The next day we left for Fleury-sur-Seine. Michelle and Steve decided to cycle ahead to warn the locks of our arrival, help the lock keeper open the lock doors, and take some photos of Moondance in action. At the port at Fleury we could get water, electricity. And we had a nice look around the small town. That evening we had a meal at the restaurant overlooking the port. We had a little unexpected water in the bilge, so in the morning Howard checked the stern gland under our bed. There he found that the belt for the automatic greaser had come apart and was no longer turning, and therefore wasn't greasing the drive shaft, meaning that the cord packing the stern gland was drying out a little and letting water in. The belt is very old, but Howard and Steve managed to use gaffer tape and got it to work again. We will have to order a new one. We only had a delay of about an hour, before setting off. We were pleased to see some work being done on the canal to clear out the weed which had gotten a bit worse. I was still quite exhausted so had a rest between locks. We arrived at the automatic lock into Decize at about 12:40 so had to moor to wait until 1pm. So Michelle went to the nearby store to get baguettes for lunch and Steve and Howard had a look around. We were able to pull on the rope to activate the automatic lock 10 seconds after it went live again at 1pm (yes - even the unmanned self service locks close for lunch from 12 to 1pm). After we were through the 2nd automatic lock we were on the Loire river. As there is a barrage just downstream, it is quite calm with minimal flow, so mooring was very easy. We were then able to set up the canopy and have lunch. In the afternoon, a big thunderstorm came through with strong rain and winds. I was a bit concerned as we had left the canopy up, not expecting quite such a violent storm. But we were pleased that our idea of using shade cloth rather than canvas worked well as it let rain through, and was able to withstand the strong winds. Even though it was shaken around, there was no damage, apart from the poles getting slighty more bent, which Howard thinks won't be hard to fix. In the morning Michelle and Steve had a cycle up to La Machine, while I had a rest and Howard a fish. Eventually the 4 of us went into town to follow an historical route around town that Michelle and Steve had picked up at the tourist information office. In the afternoon Howard and I did a bit further exploring around about. Firstly to the park directly opposite our boat, where we saw people training for the upcoming international canoeing meet. Then down to the port which we had passed the day before as it is between the 2 automatic locks. And finally up to the barage. There were 5 herons perched watching the waters for fish. Nearby was the original chain tug that used to tow boats along the Loire between the canal lateral and the Canal du Nivernais. Steve and Michelle waited back at the boat for their friends Margie and Neil to join us. They were also bicycle touring and arrived only a couple of minutes before we returned. Beers on the back deck, and then, after they had showered and changed at their accomodation, we went into town for a meal in the town square. It had taken a while to find a restaurant as Margie is vegetarian which limited our options, but were very happy with the place we finally found. In the morning Margie and Neil joined us with their bikes to go through the first lock. An experience they wouldn't ordinarily be able to have.
2 Comments
Karen Melchior
16/6/2023 07:07:13 am
Beautiful architecture! An outstanding lifestyle. xo
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Thomas
22/10/2023 08:34:50 pm
Dear Howard
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