December 18, by libertatemamo 47 Comments. Enjoy my friends! We were undergoing the long check-in process for the rental boat, getting a fast and furious data dump of the entire route that Hector and I were struggling to keep up with. And can we really make it by tomorrow morning?? No experience, no problem and a tight schedule to meet…what could possibly go wrong? This new trip would take us via two canals and across one very large lake all of which had very different feels as we would soon discover , but also different rules.
Exciting, but a little stressy? This part would be a breeze, so we thought…. We decided Paul on land the surest of foot , Brenda on the rope in front and me on the rope in the rear, an arrangement that would become our norm for the rest of the week. The rest of that afternoon we just motored as far as we could, stopping only for a quick shop at a canal-side Carrefour, and it….
Beautiful, placid lakes bounded by land on one side and a long barrier island on the other. We were the only boat around, silent and cruising as smooth as silk, pink flamingoes swooping down, the sun gently setting and a burning sky reflected in the mirror of the canal. It was serene and gorgeous and we all felt ourselves relaxing from the afternoon stress. We found our mooring just as the last light faded, a designated spot just a few clicks from the drawbridge we had to cross early the next AM.
Boat secure, wine out and a celebratory dinner on board. A few hours later we figured out the Tetris-game of our two rooms and convertible beds, squeezed in and fell asleep to the quiet lap of water under the hull. We had just under an hour to reach the Frontignan lift-bridge and we wanted to be in good time as we were told it opens promptly at AM and closes right after the last boat waiting in line. Not a window you want to miss! We made it just fine and cruised through without a glitch, stopping right after in Frontignan for a breather.
A historic town just 5 mins walk from the Canal with a bustling Saturday morning market and several delicious local bakeries to replenish our baguette-and-croissant inventory. From here our cruise took us onto the lake, an enormous mass of water that could easily be mistaken for the sea.
