Monday 25th May 2015 Moislain to Marquion. 28.6kms 6 locks

Green everywhere, steep sloping edges

13.4° C Overcast and grey, colder (fleeces on all day) a few brief sunny spells. We set off at 9.05 am following MR with pins in, Markon drive engaged and washing machine on. A loaded boat came up Moislains lock and stopped on the quay; an empty péniche and a loaded 60m boat were heading for the lock. As we headed for the tunnel an empty péniche called Alain went past heading towards Moislains. The washing finished a couple of kilometres before the tunnel so we paused and drifted while Mike took the drive pins out. I took a photo to show how green the water was in this canal

Southern end of Ruyaulcourt tunnel

and how steep the sloping sides are. Amazed that we had a green light for the tunnel at Ruyaulcourt, straight in, no waiting. A cruiser came in from the opposite end and we passed in the wide section in the middle, which was designed for queues of barges to pass one another, all controlled by traffic lights. There were fluorescent lights all the way through the tunnel and emergency phones at regular intervals along the elevated towpath. As we exited we waved to the keeper in his cabin high above the towpath at

Tunnel keepers cabin at Ruyaulcourt 

the Northern end of the tunnel. A converted péniche called Blizzard was moored by the tunnel keeper’s cabin, with VNF emblazoned on its stern it is no doubt now used just for tunnel maintenance. The tunnel cutting was bordered by low banks covered with trees and the canal wound on to the first lock down off the summit level at lock 7 Graincourt-les-Havrincourt. A loaded pusher pair, Kim-Ank and Ja-Dy, overtook us just before the lock, so Mike called the lock keeper and told him we’d wait for the

Overtaking pusher pair

second locking as there was a pusher pair coming. The pusher overtook us and went down lock 7. We waited a short time, deposited rubbish in convenient bins, and before long a lone loaded Dutch péniche called Albemar arrived and went into the lock just after an uphill boat cleared. We followed it in, keeping fingers crossed that we would be able to keep up with it all the way down the six locks to Marquion. The skipper of the Dutch boat told Mike that his boat was loaded with grain to make beer

Lock house at Graincourt lock

in the Netherlands. Dropped down 5.6m and followed the loaded boat down the 1.75 kms pound to lock 6 Graincourt-les-Havrincourt. An empty péniche called Connemara came up, then we dropped down another 6.4m, holding our noses as the wind was blowing straight up the cut and wafting a very obnoxious smell from a factory below the lock. As we passed the factory all was revealed, it was named Artois Methanisation – they were rotting organic stuff to make methane, no wonder is smelled so bad. A boat was moored by the factory with Artois Compost on its bows, it was loaded

Top end gates and cill lk 5 Moeuvres. 6.4m deep

with stuff that looked like trees that had been stewed. 1.75kms to the next lock, 5 Mœuvres, something coming up in the lock so the Dutchman sat in the middle, which meant we had to do the same as we couldn’t get near the waiting quay. A Dutch cruiser came out of the lock then we went down, a drop of another 6.4m. Another pound of 1.75kms brought us to lock 4 Sains-les-Marquion and another wait. This time Albemar went on the quay, still nowhere for us to wait except in the middle being blown sideways by the wind. The bottom end guillotine gate was up for ages and the Dutchman must have spoken to the lock keeper on VHF (we couldn’t hear him as the channel is duplex – only the lock keeper can hear him) as the keeper said yes, there was definitely an uphill boat coming. Eventually a loaded 60m boat called Alriema came up, by which time a loaded péniche called Marie-Lou was catching up. Surprised that the keeper didn’t give us a red light and let the loaded boat join the Dutchman in the lock, but we went in and down 6.6m. After the gate lifted we could see that there was another loaded boat on its way up the short 1.5kms pound. As the Dutchman set off, the wave caused by the lock emptying had reached the next lock (no 3) and come back all the way to lock 4 and shoved the loaded boat back up the lock chamber, lifting it about a metre as it did so. We’d already untied so we just

Moored on the pontoon at Marquion

went back up the chamber with the flow. Scary. The péniche was lucky the wave didn’t catch him as he was going under the guillotine, as it could have damaged his wheelhouse - a similar occurrence on the canal des Ardennes completely demolished the wheelhouse on a large Dutch Barge belonging to friends of ours a few years ago. In French, the wave action like that is called a rebondissement and they are quite common, especially on short pounds. Lock 3 Sains-les-Marquion was not ready, another boat was coming uphill and Albemar went on to the quay again. We twiddled around in the middle being buffeted by gusts of wind as we waited. A loaded 60m boat called Baitulos (833 tonnes) from Arleux cleared the lock, then we descended a further 6.4m with the Dutch péniche in front. On to the last pound, 2.7kms to lock 2 Marquion. We passed loaded péniches Chrismi from Brugge and Mon Desir as we followed Albemar slowly into the lock. Down another 6.5m on to the long pound (6.65kms) leading to the last lock on the canal du Nord. The pontoon below Marquion lock was vacant so MR tied alongside it and, as it wasn’t long enough for us both end to end, we moored alongside MR. Mike and Graham went to move vehicles, driving back to Corbie, then taking one car on to Iwuy on the Escaut, our intended destination for the following day.