Helen Henry of Rarotonga
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  • Welcome
  • About Helen
  • Living and Loving
  • Reflections
    • My Travels
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    • Current Events
    • My Life
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  • Family History
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Two Weeks in a Barge on the Canal du Midi - Another "Bucket List" Item Ticked Off!

9/11/2015

1 Comment

 
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At the helm, with my lookout, Karen J.
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Our route - 308 km on the Canal du Midi and the Canal du Rhone a Sete in southern France, from Negra (near Toulouse) to as far east as Lattes and Aigues Mortes (near Montpellier), with 57 locks. We took 14 days; you can drive from Toulouse to Montpellier in less than 3 hours!
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Our barge - the good ship Homps, a 15m Penichette with a flying bridge,
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The spacious interior of Homps, including four double-berth cabins, each with en suite.
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The crew - Karleen and George from Portland (OR) and Karen, Mal, Johno and me, from Rarotonga.
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We soon settled into cruise mode.
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And into a (sort of!) routine at the locks etc.
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Karleen was a very able "Second Mate" to "Captain George", a borne helmsman.
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Karen was a great rope handler and runner on shore, while Mal ensured the bow was always in the right place.
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Once a friendly lock keeper had told me to "look at the sky", I managed to improved my skill at unlooping the aft line (rope) from the bollard. 
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There were so many highlights it is difficult to decide which ones to describe - briefly!
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The breathtaking scenery…..
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Uplocking, and downlocking…..
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Having time for contemplation…..
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The wonderful food - in this case cassoulet - and wine…..
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The companionship - here we are celebrating Karleen's birthday.
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History - the fortified city of Carcassonne.
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One of the many quirky places to buy the daily baguettes and croissants.
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The Malpas tunnel - Europe's first navigable canal tunnel, excavated in 1679.
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Charades, Karen style….
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The staircase of 6 locks - écluse de Fonserannes.
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The locks raise boats a height of 21.5 metres over a distance of 300 metres.
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"Crashing" a birthday party at a local restaurant.
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The night lights - as well as the night life!
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Pink Flamingoes on The Camargue.
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Knowing my kotuku was never far away….
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Running with the bulls at Aigues-Mortes - we were just spectators!
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Our end-of-cruise dinner - with considerable sadness.
And the lowlights? None, unless you count…..
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Mal buying a supply of pate, and eating it - only to realise later that it was cat food! Meow!!
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Having the "official" Au Revoir photo taken.
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Saying farewell to our fellow bargees.
1 Comment
Maureen
17/11/2015 11:14:11 am

OMG!!!! That looks like the funniest adventure!! And quite a lot of work too!! Good for you!!

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    Helen says.....

    I am addicted to travelling - my bags are always packed!

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