summertime goes south

2nd October

"We go down to the river
And into the river we dive"

'The River' Bruce Springsteen

Les Roches de Condrieu to Valence

We left at 8am for a 60km trip to Valence, the next feasible stop on the way to the Med and one third of the distance between Lyon and salt water.

We had three locks to negotiate, which provided the main excitement of the day. At the first the lockkeeper told us that we had a 40 minute wait so we hung around a little way upriver to avoid any large vessels emerging from the lock. We were surprised by a disembodied voice booming out, in English, that the lock was ready for us to enter. We obeyed but wondered about the source until we spotted a loudspeaker on the riverbank, we had missed the green light, the signal the lock is ready for us and the lockkeeper had tired of waiting for us.. We were a bit chastened, particularly as we had held up another plaisancier waiting in the lock. The second lock was uneventful except our fellow plaisancier was kept waiting for us again, as we are slower than them but fast enough to prevent them getting through before our arrival, a recurring theme.

At the last lock we and our companions squeezed in behind a large Viking river cruise ship. Once we were down the far gates opened but there was a long delay before we were able to exit. As we went out there was another large cruise ship attempting to enter, which obviously had not expected us to be there and we only just squeezed past him, with the aid of full throttle to cut through the powerful wash from his bow-thruster and avoid the walls of the lock approach. It transpired that this vessel, in his haste to enter the lock had blocked the Viking ship trying to leave causing the delay as he attempted to clear out of the way. No easy task considering the size of the ship and the narrow approach to the lock.
Apart from the incidents of the locks the journey it was a beautiful warm and still day and we had plenty of time to enjoy the scenery and the towns and villages we passed through.

The marina at Valence is large, shallow and very pleasant. Linda had an unscheduled swim as we approached the pontoon, which can be slippery. She was a little shocked but fortunately only suffered slight bruising to her arm and pride.

3rd October

"All the little ducks go quack, quack, quack,
The cows all moo, the bull does too,
Everyone says "How do you do?"
Down on Jollity Farm"

'Jollity Farm' The Bonzo Dog Doo Dah Band

Valence

At the marina we met the couple from the boat we had been chasing all day. They were from America and had sold everything to buy their lovely boat and cruise Europe. They were very friendly and we have been dogging their footsteps through the locks ever since.

We decided to stay in Valence for two nights. The marina is a little way out of town and from the boat we have a delightful view of the wide river and the opposite bank, which is fringed by a range of craggy heights. Our bikes again proved their worth as we cycled along the river into town.
Valence is very pleasant with ample shopping opportunities, so I'm told.

We met a very friendly Frenchman who takes his pet llama for a daily walk, on a lead, along the towpath. Although large the llama is very friendly and completely at home with humans, which is very useful as everyone wants to stop and pet him. I wonder how you housetrain a llama!

4th October

"And when you put it all together,
There's the model of a charmless man."

'Charmless Man' Blur

Valence to Vivier

We left Valence at first light to go to Vivier. The morning was foggy which almost made us turn back but we were able to follow another boat on the basis that they would see any oncoming peniches before us. It soon cleared and we had a lovely day again.

The locks again provided the day's highlight, involving a hotel ship. We followed one into a lock with another British plaisancier and three small French boats. We moored alongside the other plaisancier a little way behind the hotel boat to avoid his wash, which can be powerful when he starts to leave the lock. This made one of the Frenchmen very angry and he kept telling us to move forward to give them more room. Both us and the other Brit refused as it would put us too close to the hotel ship. We invited him to go ahead of us, which he also refused and rather defeated his own argument. It was a bit of a stand off and an entertaining display of French anger, which was a complete waste of everyone's time. In the end one of the French boats went past us and moored and we could proceed. As we left the lock the irate Frenchman powered up his boat and buzzed close to both us and the other Brit in a futile waste of his own fuel. I think our utter indifference to his antics, shouting and insults was more than he could bear.

Vivier was very disappointing. The marina was run down and very shallow with tiny, shallow and impractical pontoons. The town although historic and picturesque, also had a run down and neglected air that we found a little depressing. Our American friends arrived after us and could not get on the pontoon so were stuck for the night. We both decided to leave early the next morning for the long trek to Avignon.

5th October

"But you keep me waiting,
All of the time,
What can I do."

'Tired of Waiting for You' The Kinks


Viviers to Avignon

We left before 8am for the 40 nm to Avignon and our American friends overtook us shortly afterwards. We had three rather uneventful locks to negotiate but once again we held up our companions at each, as they had to wait for us to catch up. At the first we had to wait for 2 peniches to go ahead and there was no room either of us so we moored and they invited us for coffee. They have a beautiful motor boat with all mod cons two heads and two showers. Linda is very jealous and we feel a little like the poor relations, although they couldn't be more charming and gracious, particularly as we have consistently held them up.

Avignon is a stunning city. In the 12th century it became the seat of the Papacy in preference to Rome. The Papal Palace and the walled city that grew up around it are still complete. It is a maze of mediaeval streets with magnificent historic buildings. It is a tourist trap but as it's October there are few tourists so we can appreciate the city without the crowds. We originally planned to stay 3 nights but will probably stay longer as this is our last stop on the rivers and canals of France before we reach the Mediterranean.