Tuesday 5th April 2016 Naix-au-Forges to Demanges-aux-Eaux. 14.1kms 13 locks

River Ornain from Trevenay lock

9.9° C Rain, rain and more rain, which stopped not long after we did – then we had a beautiful sunset. Set off at 9.05am after I’d updated the weather channel’s info using the Internet at its slowest on Edge. About 300m to lock 14 Pont Canal de Barboure, no lock house. Soon up another 2.7m (the average for this canal). Cows in the fields down below the canal, so we’re back in cattle country. Leaving the lock crossing the aqueduct over the little river Barboure, close to topping its banks, pouring over a weir looking like a small waterfall. 1980m to 13 St Amand, The towpath had a covering of

Bank strengthening using hessian material

poorly laid tarmac, dandelions were growing through it. Along the next section there were marsh marigolds along the edge of the towpath. 1175m to 12 Charmasson. The lock wouldn’t work so I called Bar-le-Duc and they sent us a new itinerant man-in-a-van. I was in the cabin making a cuppa when he arrived five minutes after I called, but Mike said he just went up to the rod and lifted it and grinned like a Cheshire cat when the damn thing worked. Mike said I just did that! Even bigger grin. Must be the way you hold your mouth! 1220m to Trévenay where there was a fine lived-in lock house and a

Bank works between locks 5 and 4

large lock cabin with a very tall radio antenna on the roof. I couldn’t lift the rod, luckily Mike could. I found our old “coal” leather-palmed gardening gloves and used one of those afterwards to grip the extremely muddy bars which was better than using a rag, which was prone to slipping. 685m to 10 Charbonières, no house and the glove worked a treat. Big open green fields, a sloping field of wheat to the left and boggy water meadows to the right. The rain still poured down and the river went over more little waterfalls. 910m to 9 Petite Forge and we had a set of repeater lights on the bend,

Moored at Demanges-aux-Eaux

a green light to show us that the lock was ready for us. Again no surviving lock house. And a big surprise as we left the top of 9 – a boat coming towards us! Matilda, an Ozzie flagged Dutch Barge. 815m to 8 Laneuville-St-Joire. A man-in-a-van arrived and rattled the rod to set the lock, then asked us for the telecommand. Nice to have a lock with clean walls, obviously this one stays empty most of the time. 1180m to St Joire, through the edges of the neat little village of St Joire. No house at the lock and down below we could see a feeder channel for the canal coming off the river. 1150m to 6 Boeval,

Peniches moored on the summit abv lk 1 Tombois

woods on the left water meadows to the right. 645m to 5 Abaye d’Evaux a slightly shallower lock, lift 2.4m. Beyond the lock, on the 1410m pound to 4 Montford, contractors were doing bank work, actually they weren't, nobody was working either due to it being lunchtime or the heavy rain. They were laying hessian sacking material over rocks that had been laid in the gaps between the older bank protection – metal piling, rock gabions or concrete. The hessian had holes through it marked with red paint where there were a few plants. A car and a van were parked on the

Lovely sunset after all the rain. Demanges-aux-Eaux

first bend and a digger on the next. 930m to 3 Bois Molu, with nice views over the river. 675m to our last lock of the day 2 Demanges. The D192 road ran alongside the lock a half a dozen buzzards were soaring uphill on thermals over the woods. At 2pm we moored on the empty pontoon at Demanges-aux-Eaux, earlier than normal for this trip – but the tunnel and a flight of twelve chained locks dictated that we stay overnight here. A VNF man came to check we were staying overnight and going through the tunnel next day. Noted that two empty péniches were moored above the lock, My Way was nearest and we couldn't see the name of the other. No car moving as it was already at our next stop. Had a late lunch, then Mike watched the F1 Bahrain GP.