Day Seven Aboard Tamaris, Friday, September 23, 2005 |
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From Ecluse Beteille to Castelnaudary -
22 km/18 locks |
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We left our tie-up spot at 8:55 AM to continue our journey under cloudy skies. Within an hour, we were enjoying sunshine and basking in its warmth. Soon long sleeves and jackets were gone as we worked our way through the locks. Some were only ½ km apart, so the shore crew member walked/ran to the next lock to prepare for the boat to arrive.
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 Shoe finally can remove his sweater |
| For the morning, we were in a pod of three boats (us, a boat of folks from Great Britain, and a boat of folks from New Zealand). We all worked well together and enjoyed visiting with each other. The locks close between 12:30 PM and 1:30 PM for lunch, so we were all trapped at PK71 Ecluse de Guerre. |  The Brits follow us into the locks. |
| We lunched aboard while we waited for the lockkeeper to return. At 1;25 PM the lockkeeper returned and we were off! The lockkeeper, one of the few who spoke English, told me that she had moved from her state- provided lockkeeper’s house adjacent to the lock 8 years ago. She explained that even though the state provided the house free, and she was not given a raise when she moved out, she wanted her own place and purchased a house about 1 KM away. She commuted on her bicycle and said it helped her keep “her forme.” She said that the lockkeeper’s house was nice, but the state provided no funds for maintenance or upkeep and since the houses were built when the canal was built, they just don’t meet the needs of today’s families. |  Mike and Pat enjoy a glass of wine and a bit of cheese. |
| Since we had to return the boat by 9 AM Saturday, and the last lock was a series of 4, just as the canal enters the port of Castelnaudary, we decided to push on and tie up at the Crown Blue dock in Castelnaudary. |  Shoe and Mark discuss the Crusing Guide that we used during the trip. |
We arrived at 3:30 PM, tied up as we planned,
filled up with water again, showered and enjoyed a glass of wine under a
sunny blue sky while we chatted with boaters on either side of us. For
dinner, Mike made a wonderful potato leek soup…. |
 At the final set of two locks! |
 Shoe and Par review the process? |
 By now locking was down to a a science! |
 The final rush of water on the Canal Midi |
 The final locks complete the Tamaris and her crew move in to the basin at Castelnaudary about 3:30 PM |
 A snack of Brie and baguette before we think about dinner of home-made potato leek soup and other item purchased at the market for the final legs of the journey. |
 Shoe reviews the Crusing Guide to make sure no mistakes were made, notice no sissy wine glass for Shoe. I hope he will enjoy the AA meetings when he returns State-side! |
Epilogue