Canal de Bourgogne: Tanlay to Ancy-le-Franc

Departing Tanlay Wanderlust continued up the Canal de Bourgogne. The goal for the day was Ancy-le-Franc. Ancy, like Tanlay, is a commune in the domain of the Dukes of Burgundy anchored by a grand chateau. And just also like Tanlay, a brown tourist sign along the Autoroute du Soleil, the A6, encourages passersby to explore the town’s chateau.

Canal de Bourgogne: Tonnerre to Tanlay

Château de Tanlay reflects off of the moat.

Escaping Tonnerre, Wanderlust’s next stop on the Canal de Bourgogne was Tanlay. Though this commune is home to around a thousand residents one residence stands out, the Château de Tanlay. Separated from the rest of the community by a water-filled moat and a ring of gardens, the manor house is the central attraction in the town.

Canal de Bourgogne: St. Florentin to Tonnerre

Fosse Dionne

Wanderlust’s next stop along the Canal de Bourgogne was Tonnerre. The French word “tonnerre” translates as “thunder” in English, though rumblings from the sky do not appear to be the inspiration for the commune’s name. In truth the name alone might well have prompted us to visit. We have a low bar for such things. But there is more to recommend Tonnerre than its name. The commune has two star attractions, Fosse Dionne and the Hotel-Dieu de Tonnerre. Curious name or not, it is a worthy stop for those traveling in the area by boat, car, train, or bike.

Canal de Bourgogne: Migennes to St. Florentin

Saint-Florentin

When we first imagined cruising the canals of France we figured that we’d cruise Canal de Bourgogne. At the time the Bourgogne was the only canal that we knew much about. We’d never been there but the brochure looked nice.

Wanderlust Wanders: Auxerre to Migennes

For Gigi delays mean more shore leave.

On June 29^th 2016, after a series of delays, it was finally time for Wanderlust to leave her winter mooring. In April, two and a half months earlier, Becky, myself, and our dog Gigi returned from California to Auxerre France. Wanderlust spent its second winter in Auxerre’s attractive port de plaisance. Normally we’d return to the barge, spend a week or so getting things set, and then head off onto the inland waterways. But that would not be the case in 2016.

Small Leaks, Big Problems

A hotel barge making maneuvers at the start of the season in Auxerre

When we arrived back in France on April 13^th of 2016 it was clear that the builder would not be fixing Wanderlust’s many build related faults anytime soon. Indeed, it seemed they might just try to pay us some small sum of money to go away. It was time for us to find a boatyard to do the repair work. In fact we might have to find a few yards; identifying a single yard with all of the capabilities needed to complete the full scope of the repair work would be a challenge.

The Builder: Quality Control and the Build Standards

Wanderlust soon after launch

Building a barge is complicated. With the complexity come the inevitable mistakes and problems. When the bottom of a barge first hits the water neither the customer nor the manufacturer anticipates that every aspect of a new barge will be perfect. Post launch repairs and fixes are simply part of the process.

The Build Standards: Are Customers of Barge Builders Really Protected in the UK?

Wanderlust under construction

Sometime well after we took delivery of Wanderlust her Owner’s Manual arrived on board. As we learned later, the manual is a legal requirement of the build. According to the Recreational Craft Directive or RCD, the boat manufacturers must provide an owner’s manual with their craft. It is an obviously sensible rule.

Fuel Blowback

Wanderlust leaves Caversham on the way to her first fuel fill.

At the end of the 2015 we documented Wanderlust’s fuel blowback problem using the pump at the fuel depot in St. Mammes on the Seine. Carefully timing the gauge on the fuel pump with a stopwatch we observed a steady filling rate of 23L/min. As usual we shut off the pump at the first sound coming up from the fill pipe. Seconds later, also as usual, a foaming mass of diesel emerged from the filling port.