Author: Ian

I'm a retired scientist - better at technology than French and diesel engines but love the cruising lifestyle on Catharina Elisabeth with Lisette. As I prefer warmer weather, one of the great attractions is having summer in Australia followed by summer in Europe.
—  By Ian

Saved by the Dutch: 6/08 – 13/08

Chitry-les-Mines > Flez-Cuzy > Clamecy Chitry-les-Mines The port is at the small village of Chitry-les-Mines and the equally small hamlet of Chaumot is just across the canal. The much larger town, Corbigny is about 3 km away and involves a reasonable climb on the bikes.…
—  By Ian

Towards the Somme: 11/08 – 13/08

Courchelettes – Manancourt – Cappy So, with a fresh water pump, off we went. Our aim was to get to the River Somme as fast as possible so we could really begin to enjoy recreational cruising. We were on the highly commercial Canal du Nord…
—  By Ian

Our First Bastille Day: 11/7 – 16/7

Béthune – Douai – Courchelettes Béthune We knew that we could purchase a power/water key from the VNF (Voies Navigables de France) in the town, and decided that would be our first business in the morning. There was a steep metal ladder up from the pontoon…
—  By Ian

The long way around: 17/09 – 20/09

Bruges – Diksmuide – Veurne – Fintele Change of Plans Andy lifted the pedestrian bridge and gave us the all clear to pull out into the main canal, we checked the AIS and saw that a commercial was heading up towards us in the same…