Le Canal du Midi

05-06.09.13

From Sète to Toulouse, the 240-km Canal du Midi flows between plane trees, vineyards, and villages.  We took two days browsing through Le Somail and Homps, two towns on the Canal that cater to pleasure boaters, just to acquaint ourselves more with this remarkable feat of engineering. 



Karl on a bridge where boaters sail underneath.

This was one of the early arches built, narrow and Roman style.

The complex system of 101 locks, aqueducts, and bridges was built by the Béziers' salt-tax baron Paul Riquet.

This little boat was for rent.

 

And this is the Captain who sails her, looking very much the part.

She's moored, waiting for paying guests.

 

Completed in 1681, the Canal du Midi encouraged Languedoc trade and established a vital link, via the Garonne river, between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. 

Easily the most popular pleasure boat waterway in France, the reasons for the Midi's heavy use are easy to understand.  For owners of sea-going yachts, it provides a rapid and convenient way from the west coast of France to the Med, or vice versa, avoiding a long passage via Gibraltar.  But even more important is the very considerable use of crafts for rent from a number of bases on the canal itself.  We noticed that "le Boat" was very popular.



Perfect view of the boats sailing past from my shady place at this outside bistro.



These plane trees on the way to Le Somail are the same ones found along the Canal du Midi.



A holiday on the Midi combines canal cruising with stops along the way to eat in restaurants, bistros, cafés and to taste wine from the "caves à vin".  At its eastern end, visits to the seaside provide many opportunities for discovering excellent Mediterranean beaches within walking or cycling distance.  Development of the Languedoc coast for leisure purposes is one of the most far-reaching  plans of postwar France.

My lunch had wonderful langoustines with a grapefruit and avocado salad.

Karl's lunch had fish, rice and beans.



We stopped for a "degustation de vin" and bought Muscat and rosé, and a jar of tapenade.





Grand homes and buildings along the way.

 



Boats for rent.



We sailed on the Saint Ferreol.

 



An old cargo boat that is no longer in use.



Sailing the Canal.

 

 

Almost throughout, the Languedoc scenery is superb, with numerous historical towns and facilities catering to holidaymakers.  Sunshine, while not guaranteed, is almost constant throughout the summer: the heat is often such that one is grateful for the lines of giant plane trees that protect much of the route.  Unfortunately, a fungus has begun attacking these beautiful trees, and they will all eventually be cut down.  They have started replacing them with another variety of trees, but it will be half a century before we again see the beauty of the trees as they are here today.

 






The "Tomate", a floating grocery store for all the boats who sail by.

Tomate

 

 

This arch is much wider than the original Roman Arches and boats can meet two abreast.

Karl relaxing on his cruise.



A section where the plane trees have died.



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We are entering our first lock, "Écluse de Jouarres".



Just coming in.



Safely in.  Look at the wall and where the water level is.



Water begins to rush in.



The water level rises quickly.

Our boat "floats" to the top level.

The gates open for us to go through.

A small garden for the lock keeper.

We see "La Montagne Noire" from afar.

The grandeur and beauty of the canal itself, with its impressively fine locks, buildings and aqueducts, scarcely changed from their completion over 300 years ago.  Commercial traffic declined sharply throughout the 1980s and finally disappeared during the drought closure of 1989.  Most of all, this is a languid region: a place for lazing in the sun with no incentive to hurry.  It is possible to run between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean in just a week - but preferable to spend much longer.

 

 

 

Aqueduct to accommodate overflow from Canal.

 

M enjoying the fresh air.  It's over 30 today and very humid.

A signature heart along the way.

 

We met a British couple, a rheumatologist and his wife, who had just finished a week's rental on "le Boat" and we shared a drink with them in one of the outdoor canal cafés in Homps.  They had rented boats four times over the years and sailed many of the waterways in France.  Their favourite was in the Camargue, with less locks and more variety in the waterways that flow into the Mediterranean, with many sightings of pink flamingos, white horses and the smell of the sea.