Cruising

Wild-mooring on the Tarn with “Artemis”, 20-23 August

It’s been a hot summer, and I’ve been dying to swim. Officially, you’re not allowed to swim in the Tarn River. But there’s a way around this: you can wild-moor your boat in a spot where no-one is looking.

That’s what Roy and I did for a couple of days – we  on Karanja and our Dutch friends Jack and Sanne on their beautiful, 124-year-old Dutch barge, Artemis.

(I’d like to say they invited us to join them, but that wouldn’t be entirely accurate. Rather, they didn’t say no when we invited ourselves.)

Wide and lovely, the Tarn River

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Moissac Boat Festival, 10-12 August

This was the third edition of what is locally known as the fête des plaisanciers, organised by popular couple Tony (Aussie) and Rita (Swiss) from Kanumbra barge. They were about to leave Moissac after nine years here, and what a send-off it turned out to be!

Day One

The three-day programme was launched at 3pm on the Friday with registration of the boaters who wanted to take part in the flotillas planned for the Saturday and the Sunday, followed by live music.

Duly registered and name-badged, Roy seems utterly carried away by the music, along with Louisa and David (“Tesserae”), plus Terrie and Phil (“Mr Pip”)

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Fontet to Moissac: 25 July – 7 August

Un été caniculaire; Le Farniente Fourquais and the mineral man of La Fallotte; of fish that wriggle in Buzet; sweltering in Sérignac, broiling in Boé and grilling in Golfech

This has been un été caniculaire, as the French put it – not a summer heatwave, but a full-on heatwave summer.

Even the sunflowers are drooping in the heat

Fortunately, we were in no hurry. With no agenda but to be back in Moissac in time for the 10-12 August boat festival, or fête des plaisanciers, we could take it easy.

On our last day at Fontet base de loisirs (or leisure base), I was lolling around after a swim in the lake when Tui arrived, bearing friendly Kiwis Lindsay Sweeney and Vicki Ritchie. Drinks aboard Karanja were clearly in order.

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One Night in Arcachon

Our Karanja safely moored in Fontet on the Canal de Garonne, it was time to  see something of the west coast. The resort town of Arcachon is one of the closest Atlantic coastal spots from here, and a favourite holiday spot for the French.

According to podcaster Hugo on innerfrench.com (my latest addiction), French holidaymakers can be divided into two groups: those who flock to the Med (the Côte D’Azur, Sainte-Tropez), and those – many of them Parisian – who prefer the Atlantic coast.

The drive from Frontet can take as little as 90 minutes by motorway, but Roy instructed the Garmin to avoid all such conveniences and to take the back-roads instead.

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Westward Ho! Week Three: 16-22 July

Old dog, new tricks – me driving on the wrong side of the road to Pont-des-Sables; mediocre lunch in medieval Marmande; frazzled fuses, fan-belt frustration and the fabulous Fabré Pierre at Fontet

Villeton to Pont-des-Sables

A big day for me! We’d spent a full week in Villeton, and now we were were heading for Pont-des-Sables on Karanja, my plan being to cycle the 16km back along the tow-path to collect the Twingo and drive it back to Roy and the boat.

Why is it such a big deal? Well, I’d never ever driven a car on the right side of the road, and in France they kind of expect you to do that.

Voila! – I’m finally motivated to learn to fold down the Brompton bike – a necessary feat if I’m going to be stowing it in the boot

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Westward Ho! – Week Two, 9-15 July

Getting the Twingo to Villeton; skinning a cat in Nérac; snail soirée in Damazan; petrol-pump wine in boozy Buzet; three canal-side resto reviews; Bastille Day – let them eat paella; Allez les Bleus!

There’s more than one way to skin a cat. Karanja’s 4.3m width being too wide for the river Baïse locks, we’d have to explore Nérac (see the featured photo above) and area a different way – by car. That entailed getting a train to Moissac to fetch the Twingo from its garage.

First, we’d have to find a place: (a) where we’d be happy to leave the boat while fetching the car, and (b) with good train links to Moissac. That place turned out to be a hamlet called Villeton.

Villeton is just 12km and two locks from Buzet – Berry and La Gaule. Going downstream, just before the bridge at PK146 is La Fallotte, which has pegs and free mooring. (Remember this for the return journey in a few weeks’ time.)

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South Pacific Cruise – Part Five: Two Wet Islands

Fiji’s Dravuni Island and New Caledonia’s Maré Island were the last two stops of the cruise – and as luck would have it, the one was wetter than the other. Never mind! Tropical waters are warm, and so is tropical rain.

Bula, Dravuni Island!

The tender stops at a pier that is specially assembled before Cruise Day and then taken apart afterwards

I’m not sure whether the clouds, drizzle and eventual steady afternoon rain were a blessing or a curse: on the positive side, there were fewer cases of geriatric sunburn.

There’s no electricity here, and no cars; and, according to Heather from the shore excursion  team, “they’re as fascinated by us as we are by them”. This is billed as the true remote Fijian island experience.

It’s a fair way from ship to shore, as you can see here

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South Pacific Cruise – Part Four: Lautoka, Fiji

In Fiji,“Bula” means hello, and always gets a smile! Located on Viti Levu, Fiji’s largest island, Lautoka is also known as Sugar City. Like my home town Durban, its important Indian population descends from indentured labourers brought in during the second half of the nineteenth century to work in the sugarcane fields.

 

Once again, the Noordam is berthed in a container port

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