Day Four: Monday, October 6th Carcassonne -> Trèbes (Le Boat)

The main purpose of our European trip was renting a Le Boat for cruising Canal du Midi for seven days. Our good friends Al and Pat were keen as well. 

Lana and I had good sleeps and awoke around 08:30, although Lana still enjoying relaxing in bed. Trèbes is about a twelve minute drive east and around 7.7 kms from Carcassonne. Very sunny today with an expected high of 22 degrees. No buffet breakfast today! 

I check the dryer and our clothes are still damp so re-start another cycle and hope they dry before we leave. For breakfast I have a French pastry purchased yesterday and a banana. Breakfast of champions! Our big challenge is how to get to the Trèbes Le Boat hub on the canal?

Options are an Uber X at 45Euro, taxi at 29Euro or take public transit such as a bus for 1.20 Euro each. Our host is helpful and confirms where we will find a bus stop back down the main street of Carcassonne. There is a kind of schedule but it's difficult to read. I phone Don at Trèbes Le Boat and he tells us to take Bus #1 and ensure Trèbes is on the front of the bus as there are more than one #1 bus. Lana hears him emphatically say "if it doesn't say Trèbes on the head sign, do not get on it!!!!". We were told when boarding to say "Canal du Midi" to the driver. We get to the bus stop early so we don't miss. Luckily it's in the shade for Lana. The bus #1 to Trèbes comes by at 12:05 and about thirty minutes later we are dropped at the Pierre Loti stop in Trèbes which is a close walk downhill to the Boat hub. The bus ticket was so cheap!! 

Our schedule to pick up our Le Boat was 15:00 and we are at the Le Boat hub by 12:45 so super early. Our friends won't arrive until around pickup time. We find a building that Le Boat confirms we can leave our luggage and it is securely locked. We decide to walk down the road, across the bridge and then to the other side of the canal where restaurants are located and Tourist Information Center. We are told there is a grocery store (U Store) about twenty minutes walk away and decide this will be our destination. I eat Lana's sandwich from Barcelona and we walk in the heat to the store to purchase groceries for today and tomorrow.  

Royal Mystique B vessel. Online picture. About 40 feet in length. We are responsible for piloting the boat on the canal. Very stable boat. No tides, currents or large waves on the canal. 

My pic of our boat waiting for us at the dock. Yup, that is the colour of the canal water. We were strictly warned to never swim in it or drink from it. Our two rented bicycles are on the dock ready to get loaded onto our boat. 

We returned to Le Boat office around 14:45 so just a little early for pickup and orientation Around 15:00 Don is giving us instructions. Al and Pat have not made it here yet--apparently they caught the wrong bus and were headed in the opposite direction. We need to sign documents and watch a short video. Our boat has thrusters for moving the boat from side to side. The plan was for Lana and Al to be our captains, but it evolves that Al is really our captain as he's the only one who knows how to actually drive a boat. He has been around boats forever so we are in good hands. Steering is on the upper deck and down below. One bedroom at the front of the boat with an ensuite and another is at the back of the boat as well.

You need to prove you can capably operate the vessel before you can take it. Al took the boat out with myself and a Le Boat guy to prove he was capable. The test voyage was a success. The thrusters are super helpful to keep the rear of the boat from moving sideways too much. The wind pushes the boat around. Much different than steering a car as the boat takes a couple of seconds to react to turning the wheel. Plus, no brakes except for reverse gear. The Le Boat guy shows us around the boat and covers the details with Al. Special knots need to be tied in order to ensure the boat stays where it is moored. By the time all this is finished it is close to 18:00 so we are not going anywhere on the canal tonight. The lochs close at 6 pm. 

We will eat on the upper deck. We made a charcuterie and heated some savoury pies. Al and Pat had brought a Provence Rosé which will pair with our informal meal. In my humble opinion, Provence Rosés are the best in the world. So awesome to sit outside and eat.

Our charcuterie. 

After dinner we ventured off the boat for a walk in the dark. We checked on the three level lock just downstream from our dock. Good to enjoy the full moon and clear skies. Total steps for today = 13,500. Quite an eventful day with picking up the boat and meeting our friends. Tomorrow we begin our maiden voyage downstream on the canal and into the locks. Pretty quiet here.