|
LATE
ARRIVALS
If you are going to be arriving at the base after 6 pm, you will need to inform
the base directly. They will give you the name of the boat and the keys. You
will spend the first night on board. The base staff will do the full
briefing the following morning at 9. (It's generally possible, but sometimes
difficult on Sunday morning).
BASE
OPENING HOURS
Opening hours: 2pm to 6pm.
BOARDING
From 3 pm to 6 pm (according to preparing the
boats)
HIGHLIGHTS
As you follow the valley of the Yonne and the
Canal du Nivernais, you are travelling through a landscape where at each
bend or lock new vistas open up, often punctuated by the tower of some
little-known but sublime romanesque church.
Here, at superb restaurants in Joigny and
Auxerre, food and fine Nivernais architecture complement each other like
capon and a good Chablis. Irancy, surrounded by vineyards, sleeps around its
church which felicitously combines Gothic and Renaissance features. The
dramatic location of Châtel-Censoir, a pretty village with 5th century crypt
and ancient church vies in splendour with the excursion to glorious Vézelay,
its main street lined with medieval houses and its magnificent Sainte
-Madeleine basilica. Friendly, bustling Clamecy retains its
ancient dovecots. The canal too makes the most of its verdant setting as it
passes the Rochers de Saussois where, if rock-climbing is your thing, you
can try your hand at scaling the crags.
Auxerre:
The romanesque crypt
of the cathedral, the clock tower, the old half-timbered houses all spell
out the charm of this town.
The chateaux of Tanlay and Ancy le Franc:
Standing close to the canal, these two superb Renaissance chateaux conceal
behind severe and massive exteriors graceful courtyards and sumptuously
decorated suites of rooms.
Vezelay:
its main street edged
with medieval houses, was a major pilgrimage site. The village has seen
gather on the square in front of the basilique Sainte Madeleine crusaders on
their way to Jerusalem as well as pilgrims en route to Compostela. This
marvellous church, a jewel of Burgundian
romanesque, appears on
the UNESCO World Heritage site listings.
The Colancelle:
Three great rock-hewn
tunnels in quick succession and shortly afterwards a staircase of 16 locks
allow the canal to overcome the major change in levels between
Sardy-les-Epiry and Baye, where the canal runs alongside a lake.
Famous wine-producing areas lie close to the canal;
The vineyards of Chablis and the wines of Irancy, a splendid village of
gothic and renaissance buildings, both add lustre to Burgundy's reputation.
The 343m long Guetin aqueduct:
Crosses at an
amazing height above the River Allier. A three-lock staircase leads up to
it, and lights control traffic since its width is too narrow to allow boats
to cross.
The Digoin aqueduct:
Crossing this
aqueduct on a Penichette takes one right across the River Loire, and allows
one to appreciate this impressive spot, a real waterways crossroads. Digoin
is famous for its potteries, and a museum housed in an 18th century hostelry
is devoted to them.
|
