Traveling the Canal du Midi

Pierre-Paul Riquet was taken for a madman when he planned to dig a canal 240 km long in the mid 17th century. Riquet was a salt tax collector and and an arms merchant, and convinced the government of King Louis XIV to fund the project by putting up a significant amount of his own money. The wheat trade motivated the construction of the canal. It was to be built between the Mediterranean and Toulouse; from there transport continued to the Atlantic via the River Garonne. Such a route had been thought of before, but no one had figured out how to get a water supply to the canal. Ricquet solved this problem by using water from Montagne Noire (Black Mountains). Dams and water supply channels were built, and the canal was built in 3 stages with Riquet as director of works: Toulouse to Trebes, Trebes to Etang de Thau, and the construction of the port of Sete.The canal took 14 years to build and ended a few months after Riquet's death. It is the oldest European canal still in operation. Reader beware: given that reference materials include local brochures, many 'facts' cited may simply be the result of local claims and bear no resemblance to historical fact.

Originally named the Royal Canal of Languedoc, the French revolutionaries renamed it the Canal du Midi (Canal of the Two Seas) in 1789. The canal width averages 12 meters at the surface and 10 meters at the bottom; originally the depth was about 2.5 meters deep although today the minimum ensured for boats is 1.7 meters. The construction work was the largest of the 17th century, took 12,000 workers, and cost an estimated 17 million pounds - the equivalent of about $1.7 billion euros. The monthly salary of a canal worker, who was well paid for the time, was about 1,000 euros.

The canal starts at sea level in Sete and rises to a high point of 190 meters altitude, moving through a series of 68 locks (ecluses in French) many of which include single, double, triple and even 1 quadruple basin lock. The Canal is often lined with a row of trees, whose essential role is to combat water evaporation; and their roots along the banks protect them from wave erosion caused by the boats. The canal is managed by the Voies Navigables de France, responsible for the maintenance and dredging of the canal. A towpath follows the entire length of the canal; built originally for horses or men who towed the barges but now used for walking and biking. UNESCO placed the Canul du Midi on the list of World Heritage sites in 1996.

Here is a series of pictures showing us going through a double lock.

As we prepare to enter the lock, you can see Maureen on the side of the lock preparing to catch the lines to tie up.

Captain Dick positions us in the lock while Mary has throw the bow lines to the person on land. Locks are oval shaped and most have capacity for several boats at a time.

The first basin, or chamber has opened, and we enter the second basin. You can see the grey bollards where the lines are tied to secure the boat in the lock.

John watches the lines from land while Mary lets out line as we descend in the lock.

Through the lock, the boat heads to the next lock. Some of the locks are close enough together that the land crew walks to the next lock to be ready to handle the ropes. If not, land crew steps back on board before the boat descends in the lock.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted with Blogsy