Day 48: 30/07/17 Epernay to Chalons en Champagne

We were hoping to get a little further today, in an effort to be able to meet up with Russ and Tracie. However fate had other plans as we arrived at the Chalons lock to be told that one of the locks about 2 days away on our route south was closed until 5th August. As Chalons en Champagne looked like an interesting place we decided to stop here and wait rather than wait at a halt where there may be no facilities at all.

We also experienced a new kind of lock operation where a rubber pole dangles down from a structure overhanging the canal and you have to grab and twist it to operate the lock. Seems more reliable than the remote control. Also today the levers in the locks were on random sides so we often had to get off the boat, climb a ladder and walk round the other side of the lock to operate it. After one go at this and rushing to get back to manage the lines on the boat, Patrick announced that this could be AJ's job.

One lock didn't even have a ladder so Patrick had to give him a lift up. Not sure what boats do without an AJ!

Chalons looks like a hit for the kids, with more free activities including climbing, ping pong, mini golf and today there was also some live music with reasonably priced refreshments. We enjoyed a pleasant hour chilling out, kids having found locals to play with, and managed to by 2 beers, 2 ice creams and a small portion of chips for 10 Euros.

Back to the boat for dinner and a somewhat late night.