Chaumont to Vaux-sous-Aubigny

After a tasty breakfast and a ever-so-slightly lively discussion with the front desk man over the price of my room at the Hotel Terminus that ended in 'ok madame you can have your room for the quoted price' - I was on my way through the streets of Chaumont and back to the quietude of the canal. 

After observing for a couple of days, I see that there are two primary functions to the canal: a food source birds and fisherman and, a highway/biway for boats, bikes and walkers.  

The bird life is significant and in addition to some birds that I can't identify, I have seen more herons in the last few days than I have ever seen before.  There are also plenty of ducks.  And every km or so you can be sure to see a fisherman or two with rods set up, well except for today when it was raining - presumably the French do not like to get wet while fishing.

A typical place marker on the Canal and some way markers for the walking routes

More way markers on the tree.

The majority of the boats are pleasure boats, but there are a lot of active commercial barges working the canal as well.  Gravel pits seem to be in abundance and the barges can be seen picking up and transporting gravel and limestone in both directions.  It seems to be a lifestyle as well as a business as most of the big barges have also got accommodation, a car and a woman to compliment things.  And the woman isn't just there to make foie gras or pilot the barge as the case may be - I believe two people are really needed to successfully get through the locks.  Here is a particularly handsome barge from the UK that I saw today, parked for a rainy Saturday afternoon.

 I think we're in for a bit of rain over the next few days, but it isn't cold so it doesn't really matter.  One really nice thing about my accommodation tonight is a nifty wall heater that also dries one's clothing.  So all my soaking wet gear is now dry - yes indeed I can put on dry clothes tomorrow morning and life is good.

My distance was short today at about 65km, as finding accommodation is not an easy task around here and I had to take what was available.  In an otherwise sleepy little village, there is a wedding on tonight and many of the guests are staying here in my hotel.  Apparently they'll all be in about 3:30 am.. hopefully I won't hear them. Ha!

Tomorrow will be a similar distance and this means I won't be wheeling into my departure point of Lyon on my bike as I just won't have time without the aid of the train, but that's ok.  I'll be ready for home on Wednesday regardless.

But before I go, I have to say that I am glad that I've kept going and thank all those again that emailed me with encouragement and butt kicking to make me do it.