MAY 2016

We're just ambling along spending a few days, or more, at each stopping place.

The Chateau housing wine co-operative at Ventenac-en-Minervois,

Above the shop there is a museum of wine making.

Its a pity there isnt more space to moor, but we managed to find room and were able to go and buy some of their famous wines! One couple had driven all the way down Paris for the wine, and left with their car full of boxes.

We stopped at Rubia to visit the pretty little village with its concentric streets. Its a well tended hamlet but no facilities for tourists other than the restaurant by the waters edge.

Busy port of Homps

 Here we found the largest hire boat base we've ever encountered. Once a commercial port sending barrels of minervois and corbieres wine to Bordeaux.  It was the most expensive mooring we've had in France at €22.50 per night., and to our embarrassment they only took cash payments.  We didnt have enough and there were no cash points, so they ended up charging for less nights than our visit!

La Redorte

Another little village whose sole industry is wine production. However there are a few shops and a tabac selling The Radio Times!!! Apparently quite a lot of English people have property in the region.

Having spent a day catching up with the paint work, we decided to treat ourselves and lunched the next day at the quay side restaurant. What a lunch, it could have lasted us for a week, and I only ordered a plate of tapas!   Well there was plenty for Tashi to have for her evening meal.

A long walk to the supermarket, but they will deliver to boats if requested.

Our next stop was the tiny village of Marseilette, where sadly the quay is bereft of trees, all felled due to the disease in the plane trees. Currently the tow path is just a mud track, and as rain was forecast we continued just outside of the village and moored by a grassy bank. Having cream carpets inside, dogs and muddy quays dont fill me with enthusiasm.

The guide says that Marsellette is on the limits of the Minervois wine-growing region, and that between there and Puicheric a brackish water pond was drained. Digging of a tunnel mid 19th century filled a like where local farmers to grow different types of rice: long grain for salads and round for risottos.

We walked the village and found a tower

Plaque denoting Claude Chappe as the worlds first inventor of telecommunications!

When we arrived in Trebes we were very disappointed to find no facilities for private boats at all, only services for hire boats. Our guide tells us that the 13th century church is worth visiting with its beautiful oak beams and sculpted figures, but the tourist office informed us that its only open to visitors between June and September, so I guess we'll never know!

We were having trouble with our domestic batteries not holding their charge, so when we got to Carcassonne we had an engineer bring new ones. Unfortunately, as often seems to happen on boats, when one problem is solved another one occurs. It appears that our solar panel control unit didnt like the change in voltage, or from gel to lead acid. Whatever the cause, its stopped working!  So now we have no extra input from our solar panel.

We enjoyed walking around the town, but didnt venture up to the old city wanting to leave places to explore during our winter stay there.

So we gentle ambled on to the little village of Villesequelande. Although I had walked down to the village shop (tabac) with my shopping trolley, they offered to deliver it back to the boat.  Had I known that before I paid I would have bought another box of wine!!!

We phoned ahead to see if it was possible to reserve a space at the port of Bram, because when Nigel came through three years ago with the American barge Vertrouwen, it was dedicated solely to the hire boat company of Nicols.  Now we were pleased to find that the port capitaine organises that some spaces are available for private boats to overnight, and the moorings are shared by several different hire boat companies. Again we find a port run very efficiently by a FEMALE capitaine.  Three cheers for the ladies!

Bram

One of the prettiest moorings we've had this year.  Wished we'd stayed there longer but we had booked into Castelnaudary as we were getting low on food supplies, and the weather forecast for the weekend isn't too good.

Ecluse Geurre, PK 169.5

Here we have views of the snow capped Pyrenees on one side of the canal, and Black Mountains on the other - quite stunning!

Arriving at Castelnaudary we cross the huge basin into the port, and we have to head for the tiny arched bridge in the far corner.

Not sure if they're demolishing or rebuilding this tower!

This town has become famous for its dish of Cassoulet, originally a peasant dish, consisting of pork, duck and a lot of white beans (haricot). According to the guide book it is situated in the region of Lauragais, the name coming from the feudal group that was dominated in the 12th century by the lords of Laurace-le-Grand. It is bordered to the north by the Montagne Noire, the foothills of the Massif Central, and to the south by the hills of Piege, foothills of the Pyrenees. The soil is good for agriculture particularly cereals - wheat, sunflower and rapeseed.  Woad was cultivated, the leaves being processed into shell like shapes (coque) hence the nickname given to the region Pays de Cocagne. It was a very popular dye for its colour and resistance to washing. By the mid-18th century the import of indigo from the far East replaced the use of woad.

This is the watershed between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic.

Friday 27th May was Tashi's 9th birthday, and the good citizens of Castelnaudary hosted a fabulous party in her honour!!! There was la fete des voisins & des plaisanciers, which began at 6pm with wine tasting at the Cave du Canal, and was followed at 7.30pm by an American supper in which we all participated. We were entertained by le groupe eclectique "les trois mousquetone" allant de Nougaro a Marley en passant par Pink Floyd.  Basically we all had a jolly good time!

We had been warned about looking after our livers if staying in Castelnaudary for the winter, now we know why! Think we'll have to stick to no alcohol during the week, only at weekends.