The France Fluviale charter station is located in the small town of St-Florentin on the western section of the Canal de Bourgogne (Burgundy Canal). This famous French waterway with a length of 242 kilometres and 115 locks crosses the European watershed between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. Since its completion in 1843, ships have been able to travel from Paris via the Seine and Yonne up to the Burgundy Canal and then down via the Saône and Rhône to Marseille.
For us, the question is: where to go during a charter week? Southwards on the Burgundy Canal? Or westwards, where after 19 kilometres the canal flows into the river Yonne?
The friendly charter company owner Steve Adams opens the Guide Fluvial: "The most beautiful part of the Burgundy Canal is in the south near Dijon. It takes ten days to get there one-way. As you have to bring the boat back after half a week, you won't see much of the canal. However, if you head westwards to the Migennes triangle, where the canal flows into the Yonne, you will be in the heart of France with its beautiful old towns. You can go one-way and drop the boat off at our base in Vermenton."
The decision has been made, we want to head west to the river Yonne. In the small town of St-Florentin, we buy a few groceries in a quaint delicatessen. The shop owner insists that we try various wines. He talks in French about grape varieties and growing regions. We reply in German or English. Although neither of us understands the other, we have a great conversation.
The centre of the village of St-Florentin, population 5,000, is quickly passed through. The only restaurant open on a Saturday evening is called Kebab-Ali. The owner is putting up the plastic chairs while his veiled wife mops the concrete floor. Ali speaks a mix of German and English, places plastic furniture on the pavement for us and fires up the barbecue again. As the sun sinks romantically over the Burgundy Canal, Ali serves the menu on plastic plates. It is plentiful and tastes good.
In the morning, we travel westwards along the Burgundy Canal. Our first destination is the town of Migennes, where the canal flows into the Yonne. It essentially consists of locks. In between are dead straight - you could even say boring - stretches of canal. The plane trees that lined and shaded the waterway years ago were cut down because they were diseased. No new trees were ever planted. The murky canal water stinks in the midday sun. The only highlight are the goods trains that rattle along the tracks on the south bank parallel to the canal ...
We moor in Migennes. There is electricity and water at the town pier. Migennes is the most important railway junction south of Paris. Trains are constantly arriving, departing or being shunted at the railway station opposite our berth. There are several shops in the town, which is not necessarily beautiful, and two kebab temples on the banks of the canal.
In the morning, we cast off from Migennes, pass through the Laroche lock and leave the Burgundy Canal. We travel along the River Yonne, a navigable tributary of the Seine. We navigate downstream to the north-west with the current. The village of Laroche-St-Cydroine comes up on our starboard side. There is a jetty on the riverbank; a sign advertises a restaurant with a terrace on the bank. A picturesque spot, maybe there is still a nice restaurant by the river where you can feast like God in France?
We go alongside. It's lunchtime. There is a terrace on the bank, but without tables and chairs. The restaurant is located on the upper floor of an old house, which is accessible from the street. The manager welcomes me with the reservation book. "No," I say, "we haven't made a reservation. We've moored our boat here and would like to dine downstairs on the terrace." "Impossible, you must have made a reservation. We want to set up a bar by the river, there's no food there." Somewhat disillusioned, we buy baguettes and salami in the small town and set sail again.
The journey on the River Yonne is much more scenic than the part of the Burgundy Canal that we travelled on. The river appears relatively clean, the surrounding landscape is hilly and the fields are mainly planted with vines. We approach the thousand-year-old town of Joigny via the Epineau and Pechoir locks. The towers of the imposing churches of Saint-André, Saint-Thibault and Saint-Jean greet us from afar. In front of us is the famous stone arch bridge Le Pont Saint-Nicolas, which already existed in the 13th century.
We steer under the bridge and moor on the south bank in the Quai du Port au Bois marina. Diagonally opposite the berth, we read the advert for the restaurant "La Côte St.-Jacques". According to our Guide Fluvial, it is one of the top restaurants in France and is open every day. A new attempt to dine like God in France.
A few experiences richer, I call to book a table. A friendly lady tells me that "St Jacques" is one of the best restaurants in France. I ask for a table reservation. Unfortunately, this is impossible because the "St.-Jacques" is closed on Mondays. I am just about to hang up when the lady gives me the tip to go to "Le Rive Gauche". It's on the other side of the Yonne, just a few steps away from the marina. Le Rive Gauche" is the second best restaurant - whether in Joigny or the whole of France, she didn't tell me.
In the morning, we take a walk through the medieval centre of Joigny. Then we turn our boat round and head back up the Yonne to Migennes. There we literally leave the entrance to the Burgundy Canal to the left. We now travel southwards upstream on the now narrower Yonne. In the early afternoon, we enter the La Gravière lock.
The lock keeper is a 25-year-old curly-haired man with bright red hair. As soon as he has closed the gates, he comes to us on the boat with his guitar and asks if he can play us a French song. I ask him if he knows Jacques Brel. His eyes light up. He picks up the strings and passionately sings the chanson "Dans le port d'Amsterdam".
Three kilometres south of the lock is the village of Bassou. Here, during the French Revolution, a winegrower invented a French speciality that is now shipped all over the world. Plagued by the snails in the vineyards, he made a delicacy out of necessity. He cooked the snails and "sealed" them in their shells with a special garlic and parsley butter.
The Billot company wrote a sensational success story and today supplies royal houses and gourmet temples all over the world. Burgundy has long since run out of vineyard snails to meet demand. The animals are now imported live from China and then sold on as genuine French snails. From Tuesdays to Saturdays, you can buy ready-prepared vineyard snails from the Billot company in the village of Bassou or taste them on the spot. Enjoy your meal!
We reach the small town of Gurgy in the evening. Boats can be moored anywhere along the riverbank and there are electricity and water columns. The beautiful and quiet place is ideal for an overnight stay. A large modern supermarket is just a few steps away.
Just ten kilometres and five locks further south lies the city of Auxerre, the economic, political and religious centre of Burgundy for 1500 years. Yachts moor on the right bank of the river in the Mari-na Aquarelle south of the Pont Jean More. There is electricity, water and sanitary facilities. We pay a whole 9.65 euros for our 9 metre boat. And the beautiful, medieval town of Auxerre is just a footbridge away.
Within the old city walls of Auxerre you will find a wealth of architecturally interesting buildings. The most beautiful of these is Saint-Étienne Cathedral. Construction began in 1215 and it is considered the masterpiece of Burgundian Gothic architecture. Today, the famous medieval clock tower La Tour de l'Horloge is located in the busy, car-free shopping mile. And between the historic city centre and the Quai de
la Marine, the west bank of the Yonne, there are a number of lovely restaurants - without table reservations or gourmet menus - where you can enjoy a wonderful meal at moderate prices.
Until now, we have travelled upstream on the regulated River Yonne. From the southern end of Auxerre, the waterway is now called the "Canal du Nivernais". Although this canal continues to follow the course of the Yonne and uses the same riverbed in places, it is separated from the flowing water by hydraulic structures. Further upstream, where the Yonne meanders strongly, a separate canal bed was built parallel to it.
The 174-kilometre-long canal with its 81 locks was completed in 1843 and enables continuous shipping traffic from the Loire Valley to Paris. The economic background was the enormous demand for timber and firewood in the French metropolis. Due to the small locks and shallow draught, the Canal du Nivernais between Auxerre and the Loire is now only used by pleasure craft.
South of Auxerre, it reveals its picturesque beauty. The river is lined with forests and vineyards and has clean water. We rarely come across another boat and have the feeling that we are travelling alone. Apart from the always friendly lock keepers, we only see a few people.
After the last lock pull shortly before 6 p.m., we look for a mooring south of the village of Bailly. Bailly is one of the three major wine-growing centres in Burgundy. But in this idyllic village, we can't find anywhere to moor. About 300 metres further south, however, we discover a mooring belonging to the Bailly Lapierre wine cellar. It's worth a visit!
With an underground area of four hectares, Bailly Lapierre is probably the largest wine cellar in the world. It was originally an underground quarry where the natural stone for Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris was extracted. Later, the stones for magnificent secular buildings in the metropolis on the Seine were cut out of the mountain and shipped here.
The underground labyrinth has belonged to the Bailly winegrowers' co-operative since 1972. This is where the liquid gold from Burgundy is stored and matured at a constant temperature. The top product is the Crémant de Bourgogne, for which 430 winegrowers deliver their grapes. After 18 months, 3.5 million bottles of sparkling wine are produced, which is also exported to Germany. The wine cellar is only a few metres away from the landing stage and can be visited. Unfortunately, we missed the start of the last tour at 5.30 pm, but we were still in time for the most important part: the tasting of Burgundy wines. Highly recommended!
South of Bailly, the canal runs in a separate bed parallel to the increasingly rapid mountain river Yonne. The landscape is sparsely populated - breathtaking silence and solitude in the heart of France. We pass the picturesque settlement of Vincelles, followed four kilometres further south by the medieval village of Cravant, surrounded by moats.
We moor in the small harbour and ask if we can fill up with drinking water. No problem, says the woman at the tourist information centre and brings us a rolled-up garden hose that reaches right up to our boat. No, we don't have to pay anything for it, not even a mooring fee. Instead, she hands us a folder about the historic fortifications of the village of Cravant, which we should take a look at.
We now feel very much at home in this remote part of Burgundy with its small waterway, the old villages on the banks and the friendly and laid-back people. You get the feeling that the clocks tick more slowly here.
Two kilometres south of Cravant, we unfortunately have to leave the Canal du Nivernais. A 3.8 kilometre-long branch canal leads eastwards to the small town of Vermenton, where France Fluviale's second charter base is located. We had just fallen in love with this beautiful country when the journey came to an end.
WHAT SKIPPERS NEED TO KNOW
The company The family business has been offering licence-free boating holidays on the inland waters of France since 1993. The charter company has bases in St-Florentin and Vermenton in Burgundy and Capestang on the Canal du Midi. The small company attaches great importance to personalised service and good quality. In addition to the high-quality Linssen boats (29.9 to 34.9 feet), the company also offers typical regional houseboats for 4 to 8 people.
Info and bookingFrance Fluviale, Burgundy Cruisers SARL, 1 Quai du Port, 89270 Vermenton, France; Tel: 0033-(0)3-868 154 55, www.francefluviale.com. France Fluviale is a member of Linssen Boating Holidays (LBH), a Europe-wide network of Linssen yacht charter companies: www.linssenboatingholi days.com
The boatThe Linssen 29.9 Sedan that we chartered is a classic steel displacement boat with an elegant design that stands out among the slightly damaged plastic houseboats on the French inland waterways. The front of the boat has a comfortable double cabin with wet room (shower) and separate WC. The spacious saloon has a well-equipped galley. The steering position is inside. Thanks to the huge sliding hatch across the entire width of the saloon, you get that convertible feeling in good weather. We took delivery of the boat in a visually and technically perfect condition.
Technical data: Length 9.35 m, beam 3.35 m; engine: Volvo Penta 40 kW (55 hp), (throttled for charter operation), fuel consumption approx. 4 l/h. Weekly prices: 1300-2000 euros, plus around 200 euros for fuel and gas.
Tips for the trip
- Joigny and Auxerre in particular are old towns with well-preserved historical centres that are well worth a visit. In the latter, the Saint-Étienne Cathedral and the L'Horloge clock tower are outstanding works of Burgundian Gothic architecture.
- In the village of Bassou (river Yonne, km 18, left bank), a few metres from the shore, you will find the Billot factory, which prepares snails in the Burgundy tradition and sends them all over the world. The snails can be bought and tasted on site, Tuesdays to Saturdays from 10am to 12pm and from 2pm to 6pm. Tel. 0386-733 700.
- On the Canal du Nivernais at km 163 lies the beautiful village of Bailly, 300 metres south of which is the landing stage of the famous Bailly Lapierre wine cellar. The largest underground quarry of the Middle Ages covers an area of four hectares. Among other things, the natural stone for the famous Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris was quarried here. The quarry was shut down around a hundred years ago and was used to grow mushrooms from 1927 to 1970. Since 1972 it has been a wine cellar - probably the largest in the world. Open to the public. Guided tours daily from mid-March to mid-November from 14:30 to 17:30. www.bailly-lapierre.fr
Cruise literature
- Hanne Müntinga, Michael Niessen: Hausbooturlaub Frankreich, Edition Maritim, Hamburg, 19.90 euros.
- David Edwards-May: Binnengewässer Frankreichs, Edition Maritim, Hamburg, 49.90 euros.
- Guide Fluvial No. 11 Bourgogne Nivernais, waterway atlas (Burgundy Canal, Yonne River, Canal du Nivernais) with all the necessary nautical information and a description of the sights in French, English and German. Available on board.
Cruising stages
- St-Florentin - Migennes 19 km
- Migennes - Joigny 9 km
- Joigny - Bassou - Gurgy 21 km
- Gurgy - Auxerre 10 km
- Auxerre - Bailly 12 km
- Bailly - Vermonton 13 km
Total: 84 km, locks: 33
