Be careful if you go there, the electricity is configured so that live and neutral are reversed. This mostly presents no problem but if you had a fault on your boat, it could make things much worse by keeping circuits live even when switched off or with a fuse/breaker blown. It could also cause a neutral-earth short on your boat to turn from a benign and probably unrecognised problem into a potential fire.
We used a crossover cable to correct the fault. Most people won’t even know it was there. I told Paul – who seems like a nice chap - about this and was surprised that his attitude was “It’s not my problem. It’s been like this for 30 years and I’m not going to fix it now”.
All that said, it is still an excellent place. Paul even has a selection of chandlery and was able to provide me with a spare impeller for my engine to replace the one we used in Paris.
Auxerre is an absolute gem. It’s a medieval walled city on a hill. Much of the part within the walls is unspoilt with medieval timbered buildings mixed beautifully with 18th century and modern buildings.
It has excellent shopping, fascinating squares and cafes, a superb cathedral
with a fantastic fully 3D sculptured doorway to take your breath away. Inside is very impressive – although it is still beaten in my view by the amazing Cathedral at Sens.
The church of St Eusébe is also well worth a visit. It is pure-white, with sparse but tasteful decoration absolutely beautiful! The stained glass windows in the Lady Chapel are very strange – I suspect it’s something Knights Templar /Corelyngian ish. Whatever it is L & I couldn’t figure most of it out. We didn’t go into the third great church – but others told me it is well worth a visit too.
We got back and were talking to Paul’s wife when I suddenly saw a large motor cruiser backing into Rosa. I rushed over and jumped aboard but they seem to have sorted it out without damage. They went round for a second try and this time screwed it up completely, ending up sideways to the river with their stern pinned against my bow by the current and a crew member clinging like grim death onto his stern line. I yelled at him to go forward which he did at full throttle and full wheel which hugely increased the pressure on poor Rosa. She ended up with several scrapes on the bow. The Aussies on board were apologetic but the poor guys had never been on a boat before and they were cast adrift on this huge machine by the hire company with essentially no training! I’ve put in an insurance claim. Unfortunately, Paul has prevented his wife as being a witness for me (even though she saw everything) as he doesn’t want to get involved.
You can understand that he probably gets a lot of business from these hire companies so he doesn’t want to get on the wrong side of them. Nevertheless it confirms again that while his services are excellent and his reputation for doing what he says is well deserved, if any dispute or issue might impinge on his interests he will have no hesitation, or compunction about putting his own interests before yours.
A short trip to the Hypermarket found us a cheap fishing rod to mount on the bow to act as a tell-tale with low bridges – an idea I got from Mike at Moret. Works beautifully and hugely reduces the stress of low bridges!
We had planned to go to the market in Auxerre on Tuesday morning early and then set off up the Nivernais. When the day came, it was pouring with rain and hammered solidly until 12.00. It was then very wet in bursts until 1600. Rather than getting soaked, I sat and worked and L went to the Hypermarket and also did the washing.
We finally got away at 1550 and went with some trepidation into the first lock on the Canal du Nivernais which is not only tiny but also completely manual. In the event it was surprisingly easy. It took us four locks get our technique down pat but it now feels like a smooth operation with little stress.
Rom, if you are reading this, you were dead right. It’s essential to snub the bitter end of the mooring lines on a cleat or winch. Otherwise you end up hanging on for grim death and risking the rope being dragged bodily out of your hands (or following it, still attached, into the water).
We’ve moored up underneath the caves at Bailly and are looking forward to seeing the caves and buying some bottles of the local sparkling wine that is made and stored in them.
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