Moored on the pontoon at Lumes |
11.9°
C A pleasant cool morning, getting hotter (mid-thirties) again by
mid-afternoon, rain later. Mike refilled the water tank and then we left at
9.05am heading back upriver on the Meuse. There were two Dutch cruisers on the
pontoon, three others had left earlier although we didn’t hear them go. A
fishing boat with two men on board went past heading upriver just before we set
off, when we caught up they were setting up to fish where a loop of the river
had been cut
off by the railway yards at Nouvion. A new build British DB with
the unusual name of Siyabonga (African for thank you) went past heading
downstream by the first road bridge in Nouvion, followed five minutes later by
a very large steel cruiser called Queen, with a large EU plus all member
nations flag on the back. No problems this time with Dom-le-Mesnil lock as Mike
had spotted the sensor was on the left and steered into the chamber past it
then went right so I could reach the bar. As we
left the short lock cut we
passed a large Dutch cruiser. Carried on upriver the short distance to the
junction with the canal des Ardennes and waited while another big Dutch cruiser
came down Meuse lock 7 (which we noted from the new lockside sign had been
re-christened Dom-le-Menil - their mis-spelling). There were four more boats
above the lock waiting to come down. A large British cruiser (having trouble
with the in-flow from the back pump) was very close to the lock and behind him
were two more
large cruisers, both German, who were hanging back. The British
boat waited for one of them to go in with him, but neither budged and declined
when we said that they were waiting for someone to fill the space behind them
in the chamber. Gave up and went past them and the small Belgian cruiser behind
them and moored in the same place we’d been tied up last Tuesday. The hotel
boat Merwede was still in the same spot behind us, crew sitting out on the deck
(their passengers turned up
during the late afternoon). It was 11.15am and
getting hotter again. Tied up, dropped blinds on the sunny side and set up the
solar panels. Mike went to Pont-à-Bar Services in the car to pick up the two
parcels that had been delivered there for us, we had some lunch then we went by
car to do shopping at Carrefour in Charleville-Mézièrs.
Heron below the lock at Dom-le-Mesnil. R Meuse |
Former lock house at Meuse lk c. des Ardennes. Sign says Bureau de Declaration - papers to the office! (we remember that!) |
Queue above lock 7 Meuse on canal des Ardennes |
Back to that grassy bank again. Pont-a-Bar |
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