Mad Dogs and Englishmen....
Go Out in the Midday Sun.( Part I)
BOATINGCLIMATE CHANGE
7/3/20255 min read
Yes, I know...in my last blog I vowed never to get caught out in the intense heat again. And yet on Monday, when this area was suffering under an amber heat alert along with most of France, we decided to take our boat to the boatyard at Grau d'Agde for its repair and maintenance after all. By taking the longer, inland route over the étang, rather than waiting for the lifting bridge at Frontignan, so that we could go by sea, we could gain a couple of hours, and complete our journey before the intense heat of the day had begun( or so the theory went.)We duly set off from home at 5a.m. By six-thirty we were already heading across the empty étang , as a fierce sun rose in the east behind us. The breeze off the brackish water was cool, and refreshing . Navigation was easy , as all we had to do was head across the empty étang, always keeping Mont St Loup in sight. This is an ancient volcano that rises above Agde, and gives rise to all the black basalt we see around there in the quays and pavements.. Shortly after eight, we saw the lighthouse of Onglous, which marks the beginning of the Canal du Midi. Things were going extremely well.
The lower reaches of the Canal du Midi are treeless, and characterised by flat marshy land and shallow lagoons, which are often populated by flocks of flamants rouges( flamingoes.) I have fond memories of crossing this stretch, for we would often glimpse an electric blue kingfisher or two darting from one bank to the other ahead of our boat, or a stately grey heron. Today, all we saw were dragon flies and damsel flies skimming the water, and a pair of beautiful échasses blanches( black winged stilts.) These graceful ballerina like birds fly in from Africa in April, and special areas have been set aside in the marshes for them to breed.
We were making good time, and had reached the first lock at Bagnas before 9a.m. which is the time that it opens. The lock keeper had already arrived, and as soon as she saw us, the lock gates ahead opened up for us to enter. We moored up inside the lock, and chatted briefly . She told us how times have changed. Once large tourist hire boats would be queueing up to pass through. Now, she told me, they barely see twenty boats a day. She blames Covid for people's need to economise nowadays, for indeed, hire boats do not come cheap. Moreover the effects of climate change are wide ranging. Where once the Canal du Midi was shaded by countless shady plane trees, these are now diseased and gone, and people are reluctant to face the intense heat. Albeit, many new species of trees have been planted which now line the banks , they still have a long way to grow, to achieve the shady status of the plane trees. Such a sad loss!
Soon, the water was rushing into our lock , and our boat was rising. The gates ahead opened , and as we waved goodbye the lock keeper returned to her little brick built day cabine. The larger, canal side house which was once owned by the resident lock keeper, has long since been sold. 'Tout ça change,' as they say here!
Our lock keeper promised to ring ahead and warn her colleague at the next lock, that we were approaching, and that we were heading towards the open sea. This is the famous 'Round Lock' at Agde, which has three exits.We were highly pleased with ourselves. At this rate we would be at the shipyard, in little more than an hour, and it was barely 9.30a.m. At Agde, the canal crosses the broad River Hérault, and it is lovely to turn away here and follow the short navigable stretch of river, before it reaches Bessan. Tourist hire boats are forbidden, and so this is a beautiful peaceful stretch populated by lots of grey herons and the occasional purple heron. But today, we could not be diverted, and we continued downriver, until, just before the weir at Agde, the canal turns off towards the lock. By the time we moored alongside the ancient basalt walls of the Round Lock, it was after 10.a.m., and I was beginning to sweat. One sole tourist boat, a giant affair, passed us by as we waited to enter. Before long we had passed on our way, and had turned into the lower stretch of the River Hérault that leads down to the sea. We passed Agde Cathedral of Agde, standing proudly on the left bank, which is built from black basalt.
Giant trawlers and smaller fishing smacks line the banks as we approach the piers that lead out into the sea. Just before we get there , we see our boatyard, Chantier Allemand ahead. This is a lovely, friendly and efficient family run business, which you may wish to read about in earlier blogs. By the time we moored up in their special lifting dock , it was around 11a.m. and I was feeling extremely hot and exhausted. But we couldn't linger, for it was already later than we had anticipated. We needed to get back to the car before the hottest part of the day hit. We had planned to take the bateau bus, a small river taxi back up river to the main town of Agde , and walk on from there to the station. But the heat was threatening to overcome us, so we decided to take the bus all the way to the station instead. After handing over the boat keys, we quickly left.
