Last night was the first opportunity to be tied to shore for the night. I have anchored out since I left Arles, last Wednesday. It has been a good trip thus far. The locks are deep anywhere from 12 to 23 meters. And I have done about 15 locks sofar. They all have floating bollards which makes it easy to singlehand though it takes some muscle power to keep the boat stable but I’m experimenting with some new rope-tricks. I’v met some very nice people along the way, waiting at the locks and last night here ate the small city pontoon. An English couple, Robin and Wendy from N.E. England on a Dutch built power boat they keep in Northern France. Wendy made dinner and we had much to talk about. We ended the evening at midnight with a good Irish whisky on their aft deck in the evening breeze. It is a good thing I’m on the water because they are also experiencing a moderate heatwave here. There is much less traffic on the Rhone than the Rhine and Danube. On Friday I did not see one commercial barge. Quite a few Scandinavian sailboats, mostly Danes, are coming down to the Mediterranean.

I am going to 10 o’clock mass here and then continue to KM 41 (41 k’s from Lyon) where there is supposed to be a good marina where I might be able to keep the boat at a reasonable cost from where I would like to go visit a number of my French friends, mostly in Bretagne. By train or possibly a rental car.

And I think that I shall then also try firm up my route. Today I received information from a German couple who went from Lyon Saone, Canal de Vosges, Canal de Est/ Maas to Nijmegen. Then Rhine  20 km upstream to the IJsel to Kampen. Then it will be easy to pick up the mast which will be delivered to Lelystad. This means a change from the plans I had to take the Moselle river. And it will give me a chance to go through Belgium and Liege where I have a mission to undertake for Rose Marie, our only foreign family member, my #2 daughter who has kept her Belgian citizenship since she was born in Brussels. I have more pictures but this connection does not allow it and I cannot send out e-mails from here. Tomorrow better.