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| Chateau gatehouse by lock 19 Digoine |
11.1ºC Grey skies, damp with a cold wind.
Fleeces on and I added a windproof jacket later. Had a chat with the crew of
Suzanna and their beagle pup as we were getting ready to move. They’re going
the same way as us but then the Nivernais. They were staying another day at
Genelard. Set off at 9.50am. Ten minutes to the first lock 17 Montet. Like most
of the rest of the locks on this canal the lock house was shuttered and hadn’t
been lived in for a long time. Down 2.5m and on to a 4kms pound. Made a cuppa,
passing
the old pottery kiln in Montet and into Palinges, the winding canal
alongside the equally winding road. Down another 2.5m in lock 18 Thiellay. Mike
tried taking photos of the birds of prey, lots of them searching the canal and
farmer’s fields for anything edible. Mike spotted one dive on a fish by our
bows then land in a tree by the towpath to eat it. A man on a quad bike was
rounding up some Charolais cattle, but two managed to escape and galloped to the furthest
end of the meadow. Down 2.8m in lock
19 Digoine. There was a lovely gatehouse
to some chateau right by the lock. 3.5kms to lock 20 La Gravoine. More buzzards
and black kites, some having bother with crows. 2.7kms to lock 21 Haillers which
had a smart extended lock house hiding behind a thick hedge and a van parked
outside it, down another 2.6m. Lock 22 Volesvres house had been vandalised,
shutters and windows smashed. A cycle path appeared on our right, the road had
swapped to the left and
was now the D979. A 5kms long pound. A large parking
area had been created for campervans but there were only two parked there.
Under a new bypass bridge for the N79 around Paray. A sharp
right bend and we were at the point furthest south in our trip, now heading
north west. Sandpipers flew in front of the boat. Factories heralded the outskirts
of Paray-le-Monial – a famous pilgrimage place for Catholics from all over the
world as the cult worship of the Sacred Heart started here. Into lock 7 Hyron, which was worked for us by a VNF man in a van
from
the small cabin on the lockside using a large yellow control pad. 2.8kms
through Paray. Noted the Mr Bricolage DIY shop had closed down, probably relocated. A Canalous
hireboat set off from the moorings and was going to force his way in front of
us – he didn’t, but as soon as the canal was wide enough he overtook. Mike took
a photo of a house roof with solar water heating, not getting much hot water
today! There was a cruiser coming uphill in lock 24 Quarres and so our hireboaters
were having to wait. We followed them into the chamber and the VNF man (with a
perpetual cigarette on the go) worked the lock and then stood chatting with the
hirers who were French. About half a kilometre to lock 25 Mont so we shared the
lock with the hireboat and the VNF man worked the lock from the cabin. 3.2kms
to the next. The large hireboat set off first and was soon out of sight. Under
the new N70 road bridge and there were what looked like derelict (but may not
be!) factories, there were cars parked by one so may still be working. Our
canal guide said one factory was Eternit (which I looked up and found it was an asbestos
factory). When we arrived at lock 26 Bessons the lock was half empty with the
hireboat descending in it. They certainly hadn’t been doing the legal maximum speed of
6kph! The keeper turned the lock round, then had trouble with the gates – they
opened and then closed again! He rushed round to sort it out in the cabin. All
went OK after that. Last lock on the canal du Centre. It was 4.10pm when we left
the lock and we tied up a couple of kilometres further towards Digoin at the
end of the canal du Centre according to the map, attaching to the piled bank
with mooring pins. A British couple from Cornwall came past on bikes and paused
to have a natter. We spent the next half hour putting the world to rights. It
was nearly 5pm by the time we’d finished tying up.
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| Black kite |
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| Furthest point south |
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| Solar heated water |
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| Hireboat at lock 24 |
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| Moored at the end of the canal du Centre |
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