58 November 2017 Canal Boat canalboat.co.uk- Le Petit Train – which isn’t a train at all
but a sort of theme-park truck dressed for
the part. Nevertheless it runs to a regular
timetable and it’s worth making the trip,
if only in homage to Pierre-Paul Riquet
whose statue dominates the town’s
main square.
The canal survived as a commercial
waterway much later than its English
counterparts, and as recently as 1980
substantial investment was made into a
water slope which – like Foxton on the
Grand Union – constantly had problems,
one of them apparently involving the
mechanism running away with itself down
the hill! It was officially closed in 2001, and
today it stands looking very sorry for itself
at the top of the locks, a monument to the
failure of modern technology.
We turned at Béziers and cruised back
to the Malpas Tunnel where a short walk
took us to a viewing point where we could
look down on the Étang (or Pond) de
Montady. This extraordinary feature of the
landscape is a lagoon drained by a series
of radial channels that look like nothing so
much as the spokes of an enormous cycle
wheel. From this point it was back the way
we had come, retracing our steps to le
Somail where we’d picked up the boat and
from there travelling further west, through
the pretty town of Argens-Minervois,
dominated by a castle once owned by
Simon de Montfort, where we encountered
our first lock of the trip.
Here we discovered that though French
locks have resident lock-keepers, it would
be a mistake to think they look after you in
the same way as on the Thames. Basically,
you’re left to secure your boat yourself
while they swan around with mobile
devices, like grown-up X-boxes, controlling
the paddles and gates.
The locks are clichés of everything you
imagine on French waterways: each has its
own charming cottage, and each lock-
keeper runs his or her own concession at
the front, selling eggs, milk and local
wines. It’s fascinating to watch the lock
operation too – and, like it or lump it, you
may have to spend time watching it
because these waters are still used by
substantial barges, often equipped as
floating hotels, and these are always given
priority over small pleasure craft.
The locks came thick and fast at thisstage, often in staircase pairs so that we
seemed to be on the go continuously. Well,
at least the crew were. I sat haughtily at
the outside steering position, pausing only
to make myself look ridiculous when I
realised I was steering with a wheel, not a
tiller, and didn’t really know what I was
doing. We turned at the tiny and
unassuming village of Homps where time
seemed to stand still as we sat sipping
drinks at one of the waterside cafes.
As an introduction to the French
waterways, the Canal du Midi might only
disappoint in that in places it can be very
like English canals. Squint your eyes and
ignore the vineyards and the sunshine on
your face, and there are places where it
narrows and you could be in Shropshire
or parts of Staffordshire. Well, sort of...
Until the landscape opens up, or you pass
through a sleepy village where you can
smell the local restaurant, or you are
confronted with a huge peniche bearing
down on you. Then – unmistakeably – you
know you’re in France.
We loved it. It set us thinking again,
more seriously this time, about where
to spend more time. CBGrown-up X boxes to control the locks
ABOVE & RIGHT: The Fonserannes locks on
canal du Midi, unesco heritage landmark in France
PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCKFRANCE