Le Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne – Sailing in December

Cold, wind, rain and humidity. Sometimes frosty mornings with frozen cords. These were our sailing conditions during the first two weeks of December. Of course we would prefer to sail during the warm, beautiful summer days, but this was the second year this canal was closed. We just wanted to go further north with our boat and this was the only solution we could do with our boat. We said to ourselves, as soon as this canal is finally open, we will pass it. So we can leave behind all the canals in central France, because they always have problems, and we can navigate the rivers, where we are sure there will be water.

The whole summer was hot and dry, but everything changed during the fall when it was raining and raining. A few days before our planned departure, the Saône river was in flood and navigation was impossible. What irony. But fortunately for us, the rivers, the canal and its locks were open and we were able to start as planned. But not for long, be careful, the canal is closed on weekends to « non-professionals ».

I was very happy my father-in-law and one his friends came to help us to pass this canal. The weather was bad, it rained almost constantly. We traveled 317 km and passed 136 locks in 11 days (one day we were no longer able to navigate). Our daughter got sick and she wanted me to be near her, so I can’t imagine, how we could do it without their help. I was so grateful to these two men.

The canal has many locks, is not very well maintained, there are only a few ports where you can find water or electricity. So we almost always docked in the middle of nowhere and used our generator to generate electricity. I remember a very friendly harbor captain in Chaumont, where we stopped because we needed to refill water, and he told us that this was the second year that they had closed the canal for summer, so business is not doing great.

We crossed the Balesmes tunnel, which measures 4820 meters and it took us an hour to cross it. I think this is the longest tunnel we had done with our boat so far. And a few days later we went through the Mont de Billy tunnel, which is 2302 meters long and it only took half an hour.

What I will always remember about this trip are the overflowing locks on the last kilometers of canal with plants and strong wind, where your fenders are completely useless. I’ve never seen this anywhere else.

I suppose we would appreciate and enjoy the canal and the towns there more in the summer, but that just wasn’t possible. We therefore sailed as quickly as possible to be able to close this chapter of life « in the south » and experience other adventures.