Juniperadventures

 Here are the photos taken in Clamecy and Vezelay on phone. Connie,  Bill and David in front of the Market in Clamecy Poster by Loupot at an exhibit in the Museum The Church of Mary Magdalene  The inside of the Church. Difficult to capture the essence. View of the countryside from the hilltop of Vezelay.

 We headed back into Clamecy with Connie and David.  Got our usual spot to tie up in the marina.  Such a nice place to visit.  Took a walk to the Cathedral, and the medieval walkways, the wooden houses from those times, the Chocolatier!, and the bakery.   The Church is a special place to sit in, and we enjoyed the gothic architecture.  Elaborate on the outside and the inside. We went to the Musee de Clamecy as well, which is extensive and very well presented.  It has many different exhibits of art and archeology.  Really enjoyed it even the second time.  Had a beer sitting outdoors at a bar, and watched people going by.  Enjoyed the town and sitting up top in the sunshine. The next day they all made a trip to the bakery as I walked up to the Le Clerc store a couple of kilometers away.  Picked up a rental car for the next few days.  We all went together to Vezelay which has a historic Church that is a UNESCO heritage site.  You park the car and then walk up a hill lined with shops.  Thi

The Farm and historic Estate Bill driving with David. We drive from the top generally.  The lettuce is growing well. David closing the lock door. Connie in front of the Estate doors. Left Chatel Censoir and had many more updates on our lock keepers. Nice people and they do a great job. Especially when we are coming up so that the lock fills with rushing water. David continued to  be our lock master and getting our lines on and the lock doors closed and then opened!  We had wild tied previously and wanted to go back there opposite an old farm and barns.  Nice stretch of canal. Tried one side and then went to the other which was safer. You need to get off onto the bank which can be a bit unreliable. Got the stakes pounded in and went exploring. Bill went for a bike ride.  Wild ties are nice because there is no one around and you can enjoy the views and the quiet.  But there is not electricity or water. We were fine and we do have a solar panel for power for the lights.  Nice weather so w

  The Church of Saint Mark David talking to a lock keeper to learn about her life. She is a massage therapist as well as works for the VNF in the summer. The city gate. Bill and David at Chatel Censoir overlook.

Spent the morning in Mailly Le Ville, and headed to Chatel Censoir.  David and Connie aboard for five nights.  They have been a week in Belgium with friends, and stops in Normandy and Bayeux.  They got to us on the train.   David speaks fluent French, and wanted to run the locks for Juniper as we are going down the canal.  On the way down, you need to climb up ladders if you want to participate as the water is down, and we are moving up.  David got good at this! He spoke to and got many stories from our lock keepers.  One is a carpenter, and his wife (at another lock) is a massage therapist and they are from Switzerland.  Another is an artist draws buildings.  Another owns a restaurant in Chatel Censoir!  More amazing stories:  a young guy (21) is a welder who welds up on the Eifel Tower in Paris and does all kinds of risky sports; another was going back to university, and another was an older guy who doesn't do much in the off season but relax; another lives in one of the Ecluse (

In the locks with an ancient boat. A chateau along the way on the canal. Morning on the water. The Saussios Rocks along the way. A decorated lock house. Sunshine in the afternoon. Along the wasy back there is some wonderful scenery, including views of a Chateau from the locks.     With a stop at Chatel Censoir,  we tied up at Mailly Le Ville.  We like Mailly Le Ville as you are tied up right along the houses of the town.  it is a picturesque post card like view, with walkers, and bikers and dog walkers.  There is a park nearby as well.  Across the canal  a Church, and a nearby train station.   Cooked up a good meal, and then went to the train station to meet our friends, Connie Hansen and David Eckerson.  They arrived right on time.  Fun to have them on Juniper. Heading back to Chatel Censoir to explore the  town.  Turns out the original name of the town was Chatel Sans soif which is without thirst as there is a lot of water here.

Double rainbow on the day Queen Elizabeth died. The ancient boats here in Clamecy for the Flottage Festival More boats for the Festival Great name for the vessel. The festival took over the harbor. It was a grear Festival and will be back next year as well. Boats that are larger had sails. You can see that these boats are small and now have motors. Boats and the lock at Clamecy.  Heading back to Clamecy with plans to get supplies, do chores, etc. Our friends are joining us for a few days and we are going back to be more accesible to the train.   On the way we encounter two old style boats, and it turns out they are heading to Clamecy for the first annual Flottage Festival.  This celebrates the logging industry that originated in Clamecy to supply wood for Paris. There was a delivery method that was the reason the canal du Nivernais was built.  Hard still to imagine how they dug the canal all by hand and horse.   We arranged ourselves in Clamecy at the marina, and then all sorts of anci