Our first trip on Desormais was a tiny one… Around the corner from Evans Marine, through one lock, and safely into the harbor at Migennes at the
north end of the Canal du Borgogne. There we spent several days cleaning, organizing, cleaning, sorting, cleaning….
Then the big decision. Where to first? I felt that, once Suzanne returned home to deal with her obligations there, I would be more comfortable learning to handle the boat solo on familiar ground. Having only been on the canals once prior, that meant returning to the Canal du Nivernais, and that meant ultimately heading to Auxerre.
But first, we had time to try other directions. We were sitting at the junction of three systems: the Canal du Burgogne, the River L’Yonne, and (upriver)
the Canal du Nivernais. Aware that there were a number of significant Chateaus located along the Burgundy Canal, for our first real journey, we headed south on the Burgundy for Saint-Florentin.
Now, it helps to understand our trip if you also know the Canal du Bourgogne has a reputation for being quite weedy, due to an influx of non-native, invasive aquatic weeds. It also helps to know that the diesel engine that powers Desormais is raw water cooled, meaning it takes in water around the boat, through filters, into the engine, then back overboard.
The trip to Saint-Florentin was more adventurous than anticipated. On one of the early straight stretches, the engine alarm began to blare loudly, providing the unanticipated lesson on how to clean the raw water filters in
mid-canal (a practice that was to be repeated several times along the way!). We tried various techniques for locking upstream on the six locks we had to pass through, with varying degrees of success. We also learned how “bottom effect” diminishes the speed of the boat on shallower canals. We finally arrived later than anticipated at Saint-Florentin and, with the assistance of the fine manager of the port, grabbed a cab to the local hardware store to buy an electric fan, an implement that was clearly needed after a warm day!
Tired (but getting cooler), we sat that evening evaluating our first day on the canals. Obviously it was going to take longer than anticipated to get to the chateaus, and we had an absolute need to be in Auxerre by Friday, June 15, to pick up the rental car that would allow me to get Suzanne to the airport in Paris on Sunday. The decision was easy – head back to Migenne and try a short ride down the L’Yonne!
The following day, June 10th, we headed downstream back to Migenne, adding to our knowledge base when I learned how useful it was to have a “weed hatch” on the boat situated over the prop! You can clear the prop of weeds without going swimming…
From Migennes, after a day of recovery from our two-day excursion, we set out for Joigny, located a short trip down the L’Yonne. It was an easy trip on the wide river, though the locks were much larger and, therefore, required a different technique.
Joigny is a small town built on a hillside with narrow medieval streets winding through old timber frame houses. We made our way to the top of
the hill, finding our way (in part) by listening to the organ music wafting to us from the church at the top. There we saw the remnants of the original castle and walls, as well as a beautiful view of the river valley.
Having spent a peaceful night there, and without any more weed experiences while on the river, we made our way upriver the next day to a
beautiful overnight stop in Gurgy, then on to Auxerre, arriving in that jewel of a city on June 14th for a bit of an extended stay, during which Suzanne would depart for home.
