These are the adventures of Andy and Sally Rawnsley on their narrowboat "The Puzzler". We have been living on the boat for over nine years now and are still loving it. Our Ulster born Shih Tzu, Shannon, has grown up, and has taken over the boat! After three wonderful years in Ireland, we transported The Puzzler to The Netherlands, and spent a year there. In 2015 we went southwards, to reach the north of France by June. After glorious weather throughout the summer, we arrived in Roanne in late October, and enjoyed our winter in this friendly port. We cruised extensively in France in 2016, 2017 and 2018, returning to Roanne each winter.


Sunday 25 September 2016

17th - 25th September 2016. Along the Embranchement de Nancy, and on to the canal de Vosges, visiting the vet at Charmes, and painting The Puzzler at Nomexy.

There are 13 locks leading up to the summit level of l'Embranchement de Nancy, from the river Meurthe, with the last eight lying very close together. This galleon overlooks the canal near to Fléville lock 1. Shannon and I walked between these 8 locks, as this was preferable to climbing on to the roof at every lock, in order to reach the bollards with our front rope.


The summit level of this canal is fed by water pumped up from the river at Flavigny-sur-Moselle.

On the Embranchement there are new lock gates. We had been told that this canal would close tomorrow but it did not do so, so we need not have rushed!


The canal de Vosges crosses the river Moselle at Flavigny.


It is a wider valley here, looking across to the lakes alongside the river Moselle.


The next section has an avenue of plane trees along the canal.
On to Charmes, where the fair was in full swing when we arrived. Shannon was very poorly, with gastroenteritis. We went to the vets, which seemed, according to google, to be near to the centre of town. It wasn't! We did find it eventually, having carried Shannon well over a mile to get there. A kind lady, from the office there, gave us a lift back to The Puzzler after Shannon's treatment. Surprisingly, the fair packed up at 6 pm, as we had anticipated a noisy evening.


This is the 15th century church of St Nicholas in Charmes.


This part of the church was rebuilt in the 1950's after being bombed during the Second World War. These stained glass windows were finished in 1963

This Entombment in the church was sculpted by Mansuy Gauvain in 1516.

We moved on to spend a few days at Nomexy, where there was a boules competition on Saturday, with about 20 teams taking part.


There seemed to be men's and women's competitions, with the ladies on this rink.

Meanwhile we are repainting the cratch area of The Puzzler. This will complete the repainting of The Puzzler, which we started in Ireland in 2013!



Andy is working on the locker lids.

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