The Canal de Garonne.

On Thursday 24 May we departed the marina at Saint Sauveur, Toulouse, just before 10:00am and passed through the 3 locks and under the 14 bridges taking us around the old parts of Toulouse. We then entered the basin at the Port de l’Embouchure where there is a short connecting canal to the Garonne. (When the Canal du Midi was first constructed, small boats navigated up the Garonne from Bordeaux and cargo was transferred to large barges in this basin.) However we turned sharp right into the Canal de Garonne which was constructed 100 years later to allow the large barges to go the whole way. We arrived at the first lock 4km down the canal just at lunch time (12:30) so had to moor up until 1:30pm. During this manoeuvre Terry found he could not engage reverse gear from the outside steering position. Fortunately the inside control still worked and we were able to berth the boat safely and investigate. It looked like the problem was inside the control lever unit and so we called the hire base at Moissac. Ian from the base arrived about 15:00 and removed and dismantled the control. We found a screw had worked loose and jammed the mechanism. (When we arrived at Moissac, Ian said that two other boats of the same type had experienced the same problem since we did!)

We were under way again about 15:45 and negotiated 4 more locks before mooring for the night at the Lespinasse lock near Gangac-sur-Garonne. The canal in this region runs dead straight for many kilometers at a time, with the railway line close by on the eastern side. Our mooring spot coincided with a large shunting yard and we had an old factory on the other side. Not the most idyllic surrounding but we made the most of it with a BBQ tea and tried to ignore the sound of the trains passing in the night.

Location for Lespinasse. N43º42.626’ E001º23.165’ Altitude 135 metres.

The next day, Friday 25 May, we were under way at 9:55 and continued down the long straight stretches of the canal punctuated by locks and small villages. We stopped for lunch at Grisolles where there was supposed to be water available, but the tap was far from the canal – and the moorings, such as they were, were right beside a fertilizer works. So after lunch, with Terry biking for about an hour, we pressed on to Montech where we took a berth at 16:00 with shore power and water.

Location for Montech. N43º57.680’ E001º14.183’ Altitude 111 metres.

Saturday 26 May. Heavy rain and thunder over night with steady rain all morning. (The local papers later reported that 80mm of rain had been recorded in 24 hours.) Everyone slept in till after 9:00, thankful for cozy mooring. During the day we did laundry at the Capitainerie, took a walk to the chain of 5 locks and the “Pente d’Eau” (water slope) which works on parallel with them and is used by large barges. A local restaurant barge runs cruises which go through the locks and back up the Pente d’Eau. Had the weather been better we may have taken a side trip up the Canal de Montech to Montauban, but we decided against it. In the evening we dined at a nearby restaurant which was excellent.

Sunday 27 May. Morning calm but still overcast. After breakfast put on another load of laundry, visited farmers market and explored the town. Under way at 10:00 and negotiated the chain of 5 locks and stopped for lunch at 12:30 near Porquier, 8km and an extra single lock later. Drifting down stream the GPS indicated the current running at about 1.5km/hour. Under way again at 14:00 and berthed at Castelsarrasin at 14:50 with shore power and water on the quay. The basin was very wide and there were two curious small rafts with nesting houses for the ducks moored in the middle. In the evening Denis watched two otters climb out of the canal to graze on the grass on the bank amongst the ducks.

Location for Castelsarrasin. N44º02.394’ E001º06.733’ Altitude 80 metres.

Monday 28 May. Went into ‘centre ville’ in the morning, but it was the Pentecost holiday so most of the shops were shut. In our five weeks on the boat we will have had not only five Sundays when virtually everything is asleep, at least in the non-major cities, but also *four* public holidays – ditto: May 1, Labour Day; May 8, Armistice Day (WWII); May 17, Ascension Day; and May 28, Pentecost!

The weather was still wet and squally – and decidedly cold (11.5 on one thermometer in the town at 10.30am, and felt it) but we were getting ‘cabin fever’, so in the afternoon Denis and Judy took a train to Montauban, a 12 minute ride. Montauban is quite a big town situated on the river Tarn, with some attractive bridges. However like Castelsarrasin it was mostly shut. We found a cozy restaurant/bar open and had a late lunch. After further exploration of the town, which has some nice squares with modern sculpture and fountains, and another with arcades reminiscent of the Place des Vosges in Paris, we took the train back to Castelsarrasin.

Tuesday 29 May. Morning clear and calm after a cold night. Terry cycled off to the Hertz office to arrange an earlier pickup of the car for the next phase of their trip. We were under way at 11:15 and negotiated the first 4 locks in a chain before stopping for lunch within sight of the “Pont Canal” at the entrance to Moissac. We were under way again at 13:45 and berthed in the basin at Moissac at 14:45. This was where we were to hand “Winifred” back to France Fluvial but we had a couple of days in hand. Terry and Ann are now planning to leave by car on Thursday with Denis and Judy leaving by train early Friday morning. In the meantime, Moissac proved to be an interesting town with the river Tarn close to the canal and connected to it by a triple lock. Nice BBQ dinner served on the aft deck: actually warm, dry and calm enough to dine outside!

Location for Moissac. N44º06070’ E001º05.276’ Altitude 80 metres.