Dry Dock Days

We spent 8 days in the dry dock at Atelier Fluvial.  Our survey was excellent – she still maintains her strong, thick 105 year old steel hull.  We had a new bow thruster installed, a new grease pump for the shaft, and two fresh coats of bottom paint, so she’s good to go for another 5 years.  Life in a shipyard up on blocks is interesting, to say the least.  

At 7 a.m. we were awakened to the dulsid tones of welding, sand blasting, and all sorts of shipyard sounds.  Over the weekend, we were able to get a third coat of blacking from the red down to over the waterline, so after all of the painting we did last fall, we are done – at least on the exterior.  We’ll spend some time this summer freshening up the interior paint, but that’s easy.

We were surprised while in the dry dock by friends Bob and Lynn on Tracker – we met them in 2010 when we were heading in to the same dry dock for the survey when we purchased the boat.  Déjà vu!  

Floating again, street being moved so we can back out

All 23 meters almost out

They were on hand to fend us off as we backed out of the dry dock, through the lock out onto the Saone River, and Lynn took some great pictures. 

We also got to spend some great time hanging around the shipyard with David and Evelyn on L’Escapade, which happens to be our sister ship – both of our ships were converted in the same shipyard in Holland, right next to each other.  L’Escapade entered the dry dock for her appointment a few days after we left.

I have to admit I had a teary-eyed moment as I looked up from the floor of the dry dock at Alouette’s “ample bottom.”  

I thanked her for keeping us safe all these years, and wondered if I will see her from the bottom up again.  Five years until the next haul out, who knows what life will bring.

Entering the Saone River

Roanne to Fragnes

We slipped our lines on a beautiful sunny April day this year, this time with crew on board, heading  for our 5 year dry dock haul out in St. Jean de Losne.  During our March trip to Budapest, I started to have a little pain in my left knee – perhaps it was walking 12 miles per day on cobblestones – and after seeing the doctor in Roanne, and being advised to stay off my feet for 2 weeks, we realized we needed some help moving the boat.  Good friends Simon and Mae of Joie de Vivre came to the rescue and offered to crew for us for as long as we needed to get the boat up the Canal Roanne a Digoin, across the Canal du Centre, and up the River Saone to the Atelier Fluvial dry dock.  So off we went. Driving the barge into the first lock is always a bit nerve-wracking for me, but Randy maneuvered the boat in perfectly, Simon and Mae handled the lines perfectly, and I was reminded for the first of many times to sit down and get off my knee.

This was the earliest we’ve left port, and we were rewarded by beautiful rural scenery – flowering trees and shrubs, wisteria, huge fields of yellow rapeseed (canola oil), newborn Charolaise calves and baby lambs.  

The days flew by, we were able to spend time in some of our favorite stops along the canals, and before we knew it, we were in Fragnes.  Along the way, Mae and I managed to get in a little therapeutic shoe shopping at my favorite store in Paray Le Monial – the window decorations at this store are always creative and a delight to see, not to mention the shoes!

Mae's, no heels for me right now!

We all cooked and enjoyed some great meals along the way. 

Cuisse de Canard with Lentils

Simon introduced us to the magic of Epoisses burgers.

When it was time for Simon and Mae to go home, we were  really sad to see them leave.  Actually, we delivered them to Scott and Katinka on Eendracht, who paid us a handsome ransom.  Seriously, come back soon Simon and Mae!!