After 10 fabulous years of cruising enjoyment lovely Piper barge is moving to new crew. After the most fantastic 10 years cruising French, Belgium, Luxembourg, and a year on the Thames we offered our Piper Barge for sale through Simon Piper, her builder, on his pre-loved Piper website. But for those who want to knowContinue reading “Calliope is to have new owners”
Tag Archives: Lesley Carr
Hivernage 4 – last stage to our home port
Canal Entre Champagne et Bourgogne (and La Saône) 3rd to 23rd October 2024 This is one of our favourite canals, despite the 71 ascending locks and 43 descending locks over its 224km length. The first section out of Vitry-le-François is rather straight and although mostly through countryside it is not as scenic as the kilometresContinue reading “Hivernage 4 – last stage to our home port”
Hivernage Bound part 3
From Reims South to Vitry-en Francois 30th September to 2nd October 2024 Canal L’Aisne à La Marne Courcy We had been waiting on this canal for 5 weeks, due to the canal closing upstream of Reims for maintenance on a lock. Now, with our son aboard to help us make up time with longer daysContinue reading “Hivernage Bound part 3”
Hivernage Bound – part 2
The Wait 25th August to 29th September 2024 Canal L’Aisne à La Marne Berry-au-Bac We arrived at Berry-au-Bac on Sunday 25th August after quite a long day’s pleasant cruise from the other side of the Canal L’Oise à L’Aisne summit. We were now on the Canal Lateral à L’Aisne, moored up just below the écluseContinue reading “Hivernage Bound – part 2”
Hivernage Bound – part 1
On the Escaut, & canals Sensée, du Nord, plus 3 linked to la Oise and l’Aisne 17th to 25th August 2024 BovenSchelde/Escaut Planning for our return to Saint Usage and our winter mooring had begun sometime before, partly to fit with the end of our French 5 month visa, and partly to get through ReimsContinue reading “Hivernage Bound – part 1”
Belgian Family Fun on Calliope
The Leie, the Schelde, and the Canal Bossuit-Kortrijk August 8th to 17th 2024 It had been an interesting summer, cruising north from Saint-Jean-de-Losne in France to Diksmuide in northern Belgium in order to get our hull repainted, followed by a two week holiday by the sea at Nieuwpoort. Now we had come about 75kms southContinue reading “Belgian Family Fun on Calliope”
From Nieuwepoort to Deinze – enjoying North East Belgium
22th July to 7th August 2024 Calliope and crew proudly left Diksmuide with a newly painted hull and headed for the coast down the River Yser (Iser). The cruise is pleasant, through wide flat plains of farmland – no locks until Sint-Joris, Nieuwpoort. Areas such as these are know as polders – areas of land,Continue reading “From Nieuwepoort to Deinze – enjoying North East Belgium”
High-rise Living in Diksmuide
Calliope’s lift-out for hull cleaning and repainting. July 10th to 22nd 2024 Boats like Calliope should have their hulls repainted with good black ‘stuff’ as part of regular maintenance. We were 6 months away from her 10th birthday, and thought she should be treated her to her new bottom early. Over the past 9 weeksContinue reading “High-rise Living in Diksmuide”
Crossing Belgium SW to NE Part 2
Gent to Diksmuide July 1st to 10th 2024 Gent, on the Scheldt This was one of several special family weeks during 2024. Calliope had to be in Diksmuide, North Belgium, on July 10th to be lifted out for her quinquennial (5-yearly) hull clean and re-paint. We had been travelling up from Saint-Jean-de-Losne in France forContinue reading “Crossing Belgium SW to NE Part 2”
Crossing Belgium SW to NE – part 1
Namur to Gent 22 June to 1st July 2024 Calliope began the summer in France, down on the Saone at Saint-Jean-de-Losne, and we were taking her on a special trip to Belgium for her five-yearly hull repainting. Following recommendations from lots of people we had booked her in at Buitenbeentje in Diksmuide; we needed toContinue reading “Crossing Belgium SW to NE – part 1”
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