Buzet-sur-Baise to Castets-en-Dorthe (Or….Wakey, Wakey Quaintrelle – Time To Cruise

Shore Leave Granted at La Falotte

We’re back!!!  And how lovely it is to be back on the water in our gorgeous girl, though I’m not too sure our two new crew are in agreement with that.  Quaintrelle spent a quiet and not too cold winter at Buzet-sur-Baise, with Jim and Jeanne from La Vieux Papillon and Terry and Sandra on Felix keeping an eye on her.  We visited a few times to check the tarpaulin, run the engine and continue our battle with the woodworm we managed to pick up last year…….  I think we may finally have got rid of it………

As cruising time approached we had intended to do practice runs in the car with the new crew, maybe bring them to the boat for the odd day or two to get used to it, but as usual, time ran away with us and suddenly it was 6^th July and as we packed up the house for three week’s rental, the cats, realising something was amiss, took off from their usual napping positions.  We were ready to leave, so sat down to await the return of Les Chats to load them up and leave.  After an hour, we were starting to get anxious so began calling them and within a few minutes Eiffel trotted back across the lawn from next door and I got him into the kitchen and the new ‘Stress Free’ cat carrier – which he immediately detested, got stressed and tried to get out.  So I let him out, but kept him corralled in the kitchen whilst we waited for Amber to come back.  Mike came into the house and asked where I was “In the kitchen with Eiffel, don’t open the door.”  “Amber is sitting in the hall wanting into the kitchen….”….. We got everyone into the kitchen and swiftly into the stress free carrier.  Note the name, “Stress Free”.  I’m not sure who it is meant to be stress free for cos it wasn’t us or the cats! They immediately started clawing at the door and yowling and we quickly got them into the back of the car, secured and set off, trying to do everything quickly and efficiently with the least stress to all parties involved.  Halfway up the driveway, approximately 1 minute 10 into the journey, Eiffel was out of the carrier and on the parcel shelf with Amber quickly following suit.  I was sitting with two bags of rubbish under my legs to drop off but we quickly realised it was too risky to stop now as if the cats got out, we’d never get them back again.  So we carried on on our 52 minute (felt like six hours) journey to the boat at Buzet.  After 20 minutes or so, Amber got herself under my seat and called to Eiffel to get under Mike’s, which he duly did and the panting abated and the yowling got louder.  After about 40 minutes, the yowling stopped and they fell asleep.

So much for the stress free carrier…. Within seconds the seam between the fabric of the carrier and the zipped mesh doorway had split, frayed and pulled apart, and the escapees had been freed.  We’ll have to think of plan B for the return journey.

At the port, Mike got the boat unlocked and moved to a position where we could unload everything (and everyone) easily.  I stayed in the car with the cats, who, with it now stopped were quite interested and having a look around.  Mike came back and took Amber to the boat, then when he came back, I lifted Eiffel and ran him to the boat.  Both cats took a quick look round then went under the settee where they remained for the next few hours.  As night fell and it got cooler, they ventured out, had another look around the boat and out on to the deck.

What the.........?????!!!!!!

They then ventured off and on the boat, having a sniff at the grass and we let them stay out quite late, but decided we didn’t want them staying out all night in case they got lost.  So at 1.30am while we were both wide awake, we got them in and shut all the windows and cooked at gas mark 7 til morning.

Sunday morning brought a slowish start for us after our late night and I went to the nearby supermarket for some supplies – so handy to still have the car!  We then set off for a short trip as we needed to be back at Buzet on Monday for Mike to drive back to the dentist, as he’d been having some pain, and a check up on Friday had confirmed the worst – he needed a root canal treatment.  The dentist didn’t want to leave it, so prescribed antibiotics and set an appointment for Monday at 5.30pm.

So off we went and how nice it felt to be cruising again.  Even the new crew seemed to be a bit more settled.

Unfortunately the shade from the plane trees doesn't hide how dirty Quaintrelle is!!  She had a wash the following morning!

After a couple of hours and one lock we reached our mooring for the night at Falotte, and what a mooring!  A small mineral and rock museum has landscaped its waterfront gardens and offers free moorings and it’s fantastic.  It was a hot afternoon, so we moored up, then set up the deckchairs in the shade of some trees and enjoyed a quiet afternoon.  The crew were still asleep under the settee – their preferred travelling positions for the time being.

Nice large garden for the evening.

Safe enough to emerge from under the sofa once the engine's turned off.

Eiffel's found the best spot......

The lure of the trees is too much and Eiffel ventures forth!

Early evening, as it cooled the wee ginger appeared, closely followed by Eiffel.  They were very cautious but made their way further from the boat and finally ran to the trees to have a good scratch.  Every now and then they’d go back to the boat and have a wander through the boat, and in Amber’s case, around the gunwhales.  By the end of the evening, she was sashaying around them like an old sea cat who’d been on boats all her life. 

As we enjoyed the peace and tranquillity a familiar call reached our ears, Eiffel’s high-pitched “Maaaaaaaahhhhhhmmmmmm”.  I shouted him and he called back until I saw him on the other side of the canal!!  The numbskull had gone over the bridge then couldn’t remember how he’d got there to get back.  I headed over and called him back to the bridge and he trotted to me, as Amber, looking panicked started coming after me over the bridge calling for him.  At this point a local dog in his garden spotted us all and started barking, Eiffel froze and Amber abandoned her rescue mission and turned tail and fled back to the boat.  I reassured and called Eiffel and he followed me back over the bridge and to the safety of the boat where he proceeded to do the preening ritual of ‘I don’t know what all the fuss was about’…..

We stayed out and barbequed and let the cats stay out most of the night which was great as we could leave the windows and doors open to stay cool, but we didn’t get a lot of sleep as we were keeping half an ear out for them and they kept coming in and out and bouncing on us to come and play with them……

The following morning was another scorcher and we didn’t have to rush back to Buzet as Mike’s appointment wasn’t until later.  The morning was spent finalising travel arrangements for my dad’s cousin’s daughter, Anne, who was coming to join us for a few days during one of her epic travel sessions.  I had just taken this shot…

Pride comes before a ............

…when a few seconds later the shower pump was triggered, right under Amber’s feet and she got such a start she fell into the canal.  Five years Mike and I have lived on the boat and not fallen in, Amber didn’t make 24 hours…….

So she can swim, we found out – good.   And she swam around the front of the boat and back down the other side looking to get onto the bank, which was impossible, as it was an iron piling.  We were ready, however, having discussed this scenario and made a plan, and had our trusty retrieval net at the ready, which I grabbed, ran to her, shoved the net in front of her, she grabbed it and I grabbed the scruff of her neck and hauled her and the net out.  She ran off (without thanking her servant) into the bushes to dry off.

We were a bit shaken by the episode and Mike was particularly stressed and was starting to question the wisdom of having the cats with us, but I felt it was early days and we should persevere.  A couple of hours later, we corralled them up, reasonably easily and got them on board, ready to leave.  As soon as the engine started, they went under the settee and stayed there for the journey – perfect.

Back at Buzet for the night, our first stop was to Bricomarche for a tap, as just as we were leaving that afternoon, I heard a ringing/dripping sound and we realised the bathroom sink had failed and was no longer shutting off.  Mike then headed to the dentist and I started on the first of my jobs for the afternoon, which should have maybe taken half an hour but I still hadn’t completed by the time Mike returned three hours later.  Everything takes longer in France….. His treatment had been successful and after the dooking incident earlier we decided to cancel shore leave for the crew.

It was an early start on Tuesday morning to fill the water tank and head for Pont des Sables, where we would pick Anne up just after 5pm.  The crew assumed their travelling positions and we had a glorious days cruising arriving at Pont des Sables mid-afternoon.  

Nice easy locks...

More plane trees

Enjoying the view and cool breeze

Feeling quite comfortable on board now.....

The Capitain and staff at the port of Pont des Sables are new and cannot do enough to help – very nice people indeed.  The down side of the evening was that we had planned to eat in the L’Escale restaurant only to find it is only open in the evening Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  All the shops were also shut, so Anne’s first meal onboard Quaintrelle was a hastily put together cheese and meat board, which, as it was so hot, we all agreed was all we were really needing.

The crew were authorised leave overnight and made use of a canalside garden to do whatever crew do when not onboard.  Whilst Eiffel was easily corralled the next morning for cast off, Amber slipped through our fingers – well boat, really – in at one end, shot straight through and out the other before I could get the bloody door shut.  Mike spent a good 30 minutes and a tin of sardines getting her back.  I think she really liked the garden.

Wednesday’s target was Fontet and as we continued along the Lateral de la Garonne, we found ourselves increasingly taken by its sheer beauty and tranquillity (other than yowling crew complaining that their shore leave had been unfairly cut short), only passing the odd boat here and there.  The plane trees are simply magnificent and provide a shady canopy as you cruise along to the soundtrack of bird song and insects.  It’s a gorgeous canal, we love it.  Arriving at Fontet we checked in for the night, then had a bite of lunch at the café before we spent the afternoon swimming and sitting in the shade at the ‘Plage’ – a man-made lake with sandy beach, fully equipped with a lifeguard and lots of families with their collections of inflatable water toys.  As we barbequed the evening meal, the crew enjoyed shore leave in a safe garden environment.

Plane trees and some renovation of the tow path being done.

Our mooring for the night at Fontet

Boat cats

The next day, Thursday, was another milestone for us.  We would reach Castets-en-Dorthe, at the end of the Canal Lateral de la Garonne, marking the end of the canal for us – our furthest point from Strasbourg last June.  We had mixed feelings, excited, cos we like a milestone, but a little melancholy as it felt like reaching the end of everything we planned to do on Quaintrelle in France (even though we will be on new waters on the Baise next week!).  It was another glorious day and the crew having been out all night, were already asleep under the sofa as we prepared to cast off.

Our last downward lock on the Lateral de la Garonne

Coming into Castets-en-Dorthe

For the first time we got held up in a lock, Ecluse 50, having entered the lock, the gates closed behind us, then nothing happened.  There was a tremendous amount of weed in the lock and the canal above and below and it looked like this had stopped the gates from closing properly and allowing the lock to empty.  A quick buzz through to the eclusier on duty and 10 minutes later she was with us and with trusty hook in hand, opened the gates, cleared the weed, closed them again and sent us on our way.

As instructed, we rang Pierre, the Capitain at Castets as we reached Ecluse 51, just above the port and as we reached the start of the port moorings we spotted him on the end of a boat waving and pointing us into our mooring for the night.

Another hot afternoon, we closed the shutters to keep the boat cool and headed off in search of a post box and the little supermarket where we stocked up on necessities like ice creams……… We then walked back from town down to the last lock from the canal which takes you onto the River Garonne.  This is navigable and takes boats up to Bordeaux, but it has a strong tide and is too powerful for us to do.  So we made do with looking at the lock and the river stretching westwards into the distance.  In the evening we had a fantastic meal at the restaurant at the port, Ecluse 52 and then back to the boat to settle down for the night.  At around 1.30am, I was awakened by what sounded like a dog’s squeaky toy, and opened the shutter to see Amber staring in with a squeaking mouse in her jaws….. “You are NOT bringing that in here!” I said, to which she gave a guttural growl, turned and strutted off, tail in the air, most offended at my lack of gratitude.  The rest of the night passed peacefully, well, sort of – but I guess it may be considered a bit rude to mention Anne snoring in the blog…….

....and it would be even more rude to post a picture, so here's one of the crew instead....