Anybody familiar with the Canal Du Midi??

[Guest]

We are off to France in a couple of months for a land based (gite) holiday.

 

We fancy doing a bit of gongoozling on the Canal du Midi - we could be to most of the western most stretches within about 2 hours from where we are.

 

Anybody know the busiest/best spots????

 

and even better anybody know of a yard hiring day boats so we can feed our canal cruising habit.....at least for 1 day.

 

I've got my Navicarte guide but can't see references to day boat hire in the same way as you can in a Nicky's guide for our waterways.

 

Cheers all.

[Athy]

You've got it right: the CdM is great for a quick visit but can become boring during a week's cruising (oh, an avenue of plane trees...gosh, another one...). Try contacting Napton narrowboats: they operate hire boats, under the Minervois Cruisers brand, from a base on the CdM (we hired from them) and they may do day hire, or they may know a man that can. Oh, and if you have never been to Carcassonne - go.

Perhaps a PM to the Murrells might yield some local info.

Edit: just looked at the map. When you say West, do you mean the western parts of the CdM, or of the the Canal de Garoone which is a continuation of it and which goes to Bordeaux? Minervois' base on the CdM is at Le Somail, where we hired a narrowbot from, they now have one at Meilhan on the CdG as well.

Whereabouts exactly will you be? You may be nearer to the navigable River Lot, on which boats are for hire.

Edited May 16, 2010 by Athy

[JamesFrance]

We live just outside Carcassonne, having liked the Canal du Midi since we passed through it in 1970 on the way from Malta to Falmouth.

 

There is a site with info about hire companies here:

http://www.creme-de-languedoc.com/Languedo...l-boat-hire.php

 

There is also much more about the canal if you have a good look round the site.

[stagedamager]

We live just outside Carcassonne, having liked the Canal du Midi since we passed through it in 1970 on the way from Malta to Falmouth.

 

There is a site with info about hire companies here:

http://www.creme-de-languedoc.com/Languedo...l-boat-hire.php

 

There is also much more about the canal if you have a good look round the site.

I can second the Carcassonne area, my wife's parents live just outside Carcassonne, its a fantastic area, the canal is beautiful through this area, as is the scenery!!

Regards

Dan

[Guest]

We live just outside Carcassonne, having liked the Canal du Midi since we passed through it in 1970 on the way from Malta to Falmouth.

 

There is a site with info about hire companies here:

http://www.creme-de-languedoc.com/Languedo...l-boat-hire.php

 

There is also much more about the canal if you have a good look round the site.

 

Thanks for that - a further question then if you don't mind.

 

Do you now boat in France or the UK?? and have you ever tackled the Rhone - Terry Darlington's book made it sound something akin to crossing the Atlantic in a coracle

 

- we have an recently developed option in our plans around retiring to land in France and boating out there rather than UK, just wondered what it was like - is getting a decent mooring a chew for example.

[Albion]

Thanks for that - a further question then if you don't mind.

 

Do you now boat in France or the UK?? and have you ever tackled the Rhone - Terry Darlington's book made it sound something akin to crossing the Atlantic in a coracle

 

- we have an recently developed option in our plans around retiring to land in France and boating out there rather than UK, just wondered what it was like - is getting a decent mooring a chew for example.

 

Can't personally speak for the Midi but we have boated in France from 2006 to 2008 (several months per year) in the Burgundy region (Nivernais and Bourgogne). When Phoenix is complete, within a month we hope, she will be shipped straight out to France to our home port ot there. I may be able to help with some info about that area (if required) and also info re some friends of ours who have jst returned to the Burgundy region having spent a couple of years on the Midi and doing the Rhone there and back.

Roger

[twbm]

The inclined plane, nearby locks and aqueduct at Beziers are worth getting the anorak on for a visit, and nearby at Agde is an odd roundish three-gated lock that sits on a T junction and allows access out on to the nearby river. If you've got Google Earth they're both fairly easy to find and I recall there are brown tourist signs to the locks in Beziers. It's three years since I was there but if you get to Agde I thoroughly recommend the Perle Noir restaurant in the old part of town

[bargemast]

The inclined plane, nearby locks and aqueduct at Beziers are worth getting the anorak on for a visit, and nearby at Agde is an odd roundish three-gated lock that sits on a T junction and allows access out on to the nearby river. If you've got Google Earth they're both fairly easy to find and I recall there are brown tourist signs to the locks in Beziers. It's three years since I was there but if you get to Agde I thoroughly recommend the Perle Noir restaurant in the old part of town

 

 

The inclined plane was put into service in 1980 and only had a few test done with 38m barges, their has been a problem with the brakes in the 80ies that they never really managed to repair, and as there's no demand for 38m barges in the area anyway they've abandonned the whole project since already more then 15 years.

 

What the Rhône concerns, only after the winter when the snow is melting, or after several days of rain de river is in serious floods, but if you don't have to go at a specific period of the year, even a Narrowboat can do the Rhône as long as you make sure when going downstream to be reasonably close to the bankside where the lock is, as the weirs can have a fairly strong pull, and also use your VHF to know what the lock situation is, once in one of the Rhône locks life is easy as they have floating bollards and the operation is very smooth.

 

You don'even need masses of power to get up, if met quite a few Narrowboat there over the years that managed to get up under there own power and nobody needed a tow, as long as you don't want to pull a waterskier and not be in a hurry it will all work.

 

Peter.

[JamesFrance]

Thanks for that - a further question then if you don't mind.

 

Do you now boat in France or the UK?? and have you ever tackled the Rhone - Terry Darlington's book made it sound something akin to crossing the Atlantic in a coracle

 

- we have an recently developed option in our plans around retiring to land in France and boating out there rather than UK, just wondered what it was like - is getting a decent mooring a chew for example.

 

Sorry to say we gave up canal boating after 5 years living aboard the boat in the avatar. We now have a sailboat moored at Sant Carles de la Ràpita in Spain, but do have withdrawal symptoms.

 

We tried to go up the Rhone in 1970 but failed as the current was then 7 knots, so turned off through the Petit Rhone and through the Etangs to the Midi. We did however take another motorsailer from Le Havre through Paris and down the Rhone in 1974. You were told to take a pilot then, but we found a guide book locally and went through without any great problems. The Rhone has now been tamed with new locks so the flow is much slower and no longer a problem.

 

I do not think getting a mooring would be difficult inland, but on the coast was impossible before the recession, maybe easier now but I doubt it.

[Giggetty]

We are off to France in a couple of months for a land based (gite) holiday.

 

We fancy doing a bit of gongoozling on the Canal du Midi - we could be to most of the western most stretches within about 2 hours from where we are.

 

Anybody know the busiest/best spots????

 

and even better anybody know of a yard hiring day boats so we can feed our canal cruising habit.....at least for 1 day.

 

I've got my Navicarte guide but can't see references to day boat hire in the same way as you can in a Nicky's guide for our waterways.

 

Cheers all.

 

We are off to France in a couple of months for a land based (gite) holiday.

 

We fancy doing a bit of gongoozling on the Canal du Midi - we could be to most of the western most stretches within about 2 hours from where we are.

 

Anybody know the busiest/best spots????

 

and even better anybody know of a yard hiring day boats so we can feed our canal cruising habit.....at least for 1 day.

 

I've got my Navicarte guide but can't see references to day boat hire in the same way as you can in a Nicky's guide for our waterways.

 

Cheers all.

 

We flew from E Midlands A/P to Carcassonne (Ryannair) and were then picked up by the hire company at Homps (Canalous). It is best to hire bikes as there are many interesting sights away from as well as along the canal. I recommend it warmly.

[Guest]

Thanks all - info. posted now book marked.

[Grace and Favour]

Thanks all - info. posted now book marked.

Have a geat time Martin - - and I look forward to learning of how it went . .

 

SWMBO and I are taking our hols on the Canal du Midi in late September . .

 

Three weeks on a splitter!