FW: Legrace / Cruising South Thru Belgium & France
Next part of the saga:
After spending two months testing/de-bugging things, breaking-in the
John Deere engine, learning all the new systems and going through the
Dutch Customs process to officially export "Legrace", we started our
journey south on July 2nd (plus we had a side trip to Amsterdam to
attend wedding!!). Our plan was to travel south to find someplace nice
and comfortable for the winter (Barcelona perhaps).
The initial part of the journey through the Netherlands was in areas we
had cruised the past two summers up the IJssel River, a short run down
the Waal River to Nimegien then on to the Maas River. Very pleasant
cruising but we were anxious to get further south to be in position to
meet our next visitors, Petr & his family from Prague. We have learned
that it is difficult to plan visits. We can easily say when to meet or
we can say where to meet but it is much harder to say when & where
together because our travels are influenced by so many things.
We arrived in Maastricht, Netherlands several days early to have time to
shop for food, do laundry, etc. This year Petr wanted to see more of our
cruising life style instead of just visiting one city (like Paris last
year). They met us in Maastricht where they left their car, and they
cruised with us to Liege Belgium, Namur and Dinant on the Muese River.
Many Dutch and Belgium boaters, along with a few German and Swiss
cruisers, border hop in this area, but it is a well kept secret among
them. Our Lonely Planet France guidebook does not even mention this
area, but the Ardennes Forest is wonderful.
The Muese River from Namur south was lovely with a chateau or citadel on
a high hill above us each evening. We toured one old stone fortress in
Dinant, and got a feel for how this area has been the scene of one
battle after another since the 800s. Now I understand why so many came
to America. The Ardennes Forest reminded us of the Ozark Mountains in
Missouri.
Once we crossed into France at Givet we had to take our bimini & canvas
down to clear the low bridges. We were living in an international moving
community of boaters who are mostly Dutch, Belgian, German, British, and
to our delight, we met 4 other American couples who live on their boats
full time or during cruising season.
One of the larger cities we stopped in was Verdun, the scene of terrible
fighting in World War One. It had the prettiest harbor with a fountain
in the city center. We didnt dock on the end of the pontoon for fear
the fountain would splatter us with water all afternoon and
evening. Outdoor restaurants were above us on the quay. In Verdun 3 NEW
Dutch built boats were moored in a row: 1st a Dutch couple, 2nd Swiss,
and 3rd ours. After dinner we 3 couples toured all three boats together
and the conversation was in Dutch, German, and English. The Swiss man
Hans did most of the translating though the elderly Dutch man, Wilhelm,
spoke a little English. The Swiss boat Copain (translated Chum) is
also an Aquanaut Drifter from Sneek, NL. Both Lynn and I are beginning
to understand more German and Dutch.
One very hot afternoon on Canal de Est, we tied up to a quay behind an
Aldis grocery store. We were able to bring two shopping cart loads of
groceries and drinks to our boat. We wish more grocery stores were that
close to the boat!
In Charleville-Mezieres I discovered the hydraulic leak had returned or
more correctly I finally found the real source of the leak - the
steering cylinder seal - not a bad leak but it needed to be fixed. After
two phone calls and an email, it was arranged for Aquanaut to ship a new
cylinder to Pont-A-Bar, the next town south. Pont-A Bar only has a boat
charter company, a ship chandlery/boat yard, a bar and perhaps 4 houses.
But since ship chandleries are very few and far between in France,
Pont-A-Bar look like the best spot to do the repair incase I had
problems. Also I needed more hydraulic fluid. I only brought 1 liter
from Sneek and that wasn't going to be enough to bleed the system.
Another American couple we met in Charleville, Tom & Laurel on a 1910 23
meter Dutch barge, gave us 2 liters of fluid "just in case" I couldn't
find any in Pont-A-Bar. What a life saver. The chandlery turned out to
be ok for small boats & outboard engines but hardly anything else. They
did have ATF fluid but I did want to use that.
We arrived in Pont-A-Bar Monday afternoon and early Wednesday afternoon
the cylinder arrived. The removing the old cylinder and installing the
new one was easy. Then we started the bleeding process to get the air
out. I setup a plastic pan to catch & reuse the hydraulic fluid. After
an hour+ of Lynn turning the upper helm wheel from lock-to-lock, me
opening & closing the bleed valves, Lynn pouring more fluid into the
fill hole, re-filling Lynn's bottle of hydraulic fluid with recovered
fluid and all the while yelling instructions back & forth, we finally
realizing we weren't getting anywhere. I had been following a set of
verbal instructions I had received on how to bleed the system. At this
point I read the Vetus manual on how to bleeding the system - I know, I
know; After everything fails read the directions. Following the Vetus
directions we bleed the system in 20 minutes and in the end we still had
3/4 of a liter of fluid left. The steering has worked fine with no leaks
since.
One evening at Haybes, we were docked behind Hotel de Ville the town
hall. A swan pecked on our Legrace for 5 hours straight from 5:20 to
10:20. It sounded like someone was knocking on our boat. It was
driving Lynn nuts. She took 1/2 loaf of French bread and lured the swan
away from our boat, down river, maybe 1/4 mile, until the swan got
interested in something in the grass. She them went back to our boat by
the road so the swan could not see her. The swan immediately returned
to our boat, much to her dismay. The locals on park benches watching
just laughed, and said, Nervy!. We were glad the swan finally
departed to sleep. It also pecked on the American boat behind us. We
traveled with Liv N Good for one week, and that was great. Karl and
Jo Ann are converted sailors who now motor cruise the canals of France
in the summer.
I'll end this part of the saga here & continue tomorrow.
Bob & Lynn Williamson
MV Legrace
Aquanaut Drifter 1250AK
We have learned
that it is difficult to plan visits. We can easily
say when to meet or
we can say where to meet but it is much harder to
say when & where
together because our travels are influenced by so
many things.
A long time cruising couple I know (sailors,
Caribbean) have long told visitors "you can select
when, or you can select where. You cannot select
both." They also introduced me to the notion of a
"Safety Veto." If either of them are uncomfortable
with a plan, one can unilaterally exercise veto power,
no questions asked (entering a harbor at night or
something).
Sounds like a great cruise. I just returned from
2-months in Holland/Belgium myself. What a great time
of year to be there!
Peter
We are so enjoying your travels. Thanks, Theresa & Michael Tessier, Canada
----- Original Message -----
From: "Bob Williamson" bob-w@swbell.net
To: passagemaking-under-power@lists.samurai.com
Sent: Monday, August 15, 2005 12:39 PM
Subject: [PUP] FW: Legrace / Cruising South Thru Belgium & France
Next part of the saga:
After spending two months testing/de-bugging things, breaking-in the
John Deere engine, learning all the new systems and going through the
Dutch Customs process to officially export "Legrace", we started our
journey south on July 2nd (plus we had a side trip to Amsterdam to
attend wedding!!). Our plan was to travel south to find someplace nice
and comfortable for the winter (Barcelona perhaps).
The initial part of the journey through the Netherlands was in areas we
had cruised the past two summers - up the IJssel River, a short run down
the Waal River to Nimegien then on to the Maas River. Very pleasant
cruising but we were anxious to get further south to be in position to
meet our next visitors, Petr & his family from Prague. We have learned
that it is difficult to plan visits. We can easily say when to meet or
we can say where to meet but it is much harder to say when & where
together because our travels are influenced by so many things.
We arrived in Maastricht, Netherlands several days early to have time to
shop for food, do laundry, etc. This year Petr wanted to see more of our
cruising life style instead of just visiting one city (like Paris last
year). They met us in Maastricht where they left their car, and they
cruised with us to Liege Belgium, Namur and Dinant on the Muese River.
Many Dutch and Belgium boaters, along with a few German and Swiss
cruisers, border hop in this area, but it is a well kept secret among
them. Our Lonely Planet France guidebook does not even mention this
area, but the Ardennes Forest is wonderful.
The Muese River from Namur south was lovely with a chateau or citadel on
a high hill above us each evening. We toured one old stone fortress in
Dinant, and got a feel for how this area has been the scene of one
battle after another since the 800's. Now I understand why so many came
to America. The Ardennes Forest reminded us of the Ozark Mountains in
Missouri.
Once we crossed into France at Givet we had to take our bimini & canvas
down to clear the low bridges. We were living in an international moving
community of boaters who are mostly Dutch, Belgian, German, British, and
to our delight, we met 4 other American couples who live on their boats
full time or during cruising season.
One of the larger cities we stopped in was Verdun, the scene of terrible
fighting in World War One. It had the prettiest harbor with a fountain
in the city center. We didn't dock on the end of the pontoon for fear
the fountain would splatter us with water all afternoon and
evening. Outdoor restaurants were above us on the quay. In Verdun 3 NEW
Dutch built boats were moored in a row: 1st a Dutch couple, 2nd Swiss,
and 3rd ours. After dinner we 3 couples toured all three boats together
and the conversation was in Dutch, German, and English. The Swiss man
Hans did most of the translating though the elderly Dutch man, Wilhelm,
spoke a little English. The Swiss boat "Copain" (translated "Chum") is
also an Aquanaut Drifter from Sneek, NL. Both Lynn and I are beginning
to understand more German and Dutch.
One very hot afternoon on Canal de Est, we tied up to a quay behind an
Aldi's grocery store. We were able to bring two shopping cart loads of
groceries and drinks to our boat. We wish more grocery stores were that
close to the boat!
In Charleville-Mezieres I discovered the hydraulic leak had returned or
more correctly I finally found the real source of the leak - the
steering cylinder seal - not a bad leak but it needed to be fixed. After
two phone calls and an email, it was arranged for Aquanaut to ship a new
cylinder to Pont-A-Bar, the next town south. Pont-A Bar only has a boat
charter company, a ship chandlery/boat yard, a bar and perhaps 4 houses.
But since ship chandleries are very few and far between in France,
Pont-A-Bar look like the best spot to do the repair incase I had
problems. Also I needed more hydraulic fluid. I only brought 1 liter
from Sneek and that wasn't going to be enough to bleed the system.
Another American couple we met in Charleville, Tom & Laurel on a 1910 23
meter Dutch barge, gave us 2 liters of fluid "just in case" I couldn't
find any in Pont-A-Bar. What a life saver. The chandlery turned out to
be ok for small boats & outboard engines but hardly anything else. They
did have ATF fluid but I did want to use that.
We arrived in Pont-A-Bar Monday afternoon and early Wednesday afternoon
the cylinder arrived. The removing the old cylinder and installing the
new one was easy. Then we started the bleeding process to get the air
out. I setup a plastic pan to catch & reuse the hydraulic fluid. After
an hour+ of Lynn turning the upper helm wheel from lock-to-lock, me
opening & closing the bleed valves, Lynn pouring more fluid into the
fill hole, re-filling Lynn's bottle of hydraulic fluid with recovered
fluid and all the while yelling instructions back & forth, we finally
realizing we weren't getting anywhere. I had been following a set of
verbal instructions I had received on how to bleed the system. At this
point I read the Vetus manual on how to bleeding the system - I know, I
know; After everything fails read the directions. Following the Vetus
directions we bleed the system in 20 minutes and in the end we still had
3/4 of a liter of fluid left. The steering has worked fine with no leaks
since.
One evening at Haybes, we were docked behind Hotel de Ville - the town
hall. A swan pecked on our "Legrace" for 5 hours straight from 5:20 to
10:20. It sounded like someone was knocking on our boat. It was
driving Lynn nuts. She took 1/2 loaf of French bread and lured the swan
away from our boat, down river, maybe 1/4 mile, until the swan got
interested in something in the grass. She them went back to our boat by
the road so the swan could not see her. The swan immediately returned
to our boat, much to her dismay. The locals on park benches watching
just laughed, and said, "Nervy!". We were glad the swan finally
departed to sleep. It also pecked on the American boat behind us. We
traveled with "Liv N Good" for one week, and that was great. Karl and
Jo Ann are converted sailors who now motor cruise the canals of France
in the summer.
I'll end this part of the saga here & continue tomorrow.
Bob & Lynn Williamson
MV Legrace
Aquanaut Drifter 1250AK
Passagemaking-Under-Power Mailing List
Just curious as to what brand the 55 HP engine on the Idlewild is. Does
anyone know?
Thorstein Midttun
"NORNA"
I thought it was a Deere.