Crossing a border: The Journey continues
France, land of wine and croissants, is one of the countries where the route travels alot of kilometers. From Givet, the route will lead over major Waterways
We are now on the Canal de la Meuse and the planning is to make some stops, to see the beautiful places. This is where the mountains really start, and the route guides along bastions, castles and citadels. It is a very nice preview of what to expect later this journey.
Permits, Cerfificates and declarations
ICCInternational Certificate of CompetenceBCMRBasic Certificate Maritime Radio (Operator Certificate)
Radio Licence (Your registration of your Radio including callsign)ICPInternationaal Certificaat PleziervaartuigenPoOProof of Ownership or PurchaseInsuranceInsurance PolicyVATVAT DeclarationWaterways PermitFrench boating permit (VNF vignette)
For anyone navigating the French inland waterways with a boat longer than 5 meters and/or motorized above 9.9 hp, a VNF vignette is mandatory. You can apply for this vignette in advance via Vnf.fr (on the homepage click: “Achetez votre vignette plaisance”), but you can also buy one while en route at one of the locks near the French border. A 30-day vignette for our 8-meter vessel will cost about €119,10.
Maybe a bit old, but here you find the English PDF and the Dutch PDF
You can also directly go to the site to buy your vignette: https://vignettes-plaisance.vnf.fr/paiement-en-ligne/. The site supports the languages FR, EN, DE, NL.Make sure that you attach the permit on starboard frontside, visible under all circumstances.
You cannot use any other permits (vignette) than the one provided by the VNF. Please read the PDF's for more information.
Detour or not?
When you've watched the vlogs of the "Parel", you've seen that they
had to make a detour because the Canal de la Meuse was obstructed
because it was clogged with a lot of vegitation.. It added 140 km to
their route. We don't plan to make that detour, but if needed, we have
the information here. For both routes trough France, we are going to
put the (online) maps in the proper sequence here.
One for the "normal" and one for the
"detour".
At Ecluse n.59 les Quatre Cheminees, the route takes us over the border from Belgium into France. At this lock you can also buy the formentioned VNF vignette. From this lock, we are heading towards Givet and therefore into France.
We Dutch are not about re-inventing the wheel, so we are going to use the (very detailed) information found on french-waterways.com. This is a very nice site, with alot of information regarding the french canals.
Canal de la Meuse
We enter at Ecluse n.59 les Quatre Chemineesenter before Givet.
This is on the direct route. Not yet the detour that the Parel had to take.
We will be going "on-off-on-off" on the Meuse and the Canal de la Meuse, because parts are canalised, and some parts are still river. From here on, we also will pass tunnels.The canal is also known as the Canal de L'Est.
At (PK 272.4) Lock 1 (Troussey), is the juction with Canal de la Marne au Rhin.
This is at "48° 42′ 52.72″ N, 5° 41′ 23.76″ E"Canal de la MeuseLengthApprox. 272 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 5,20mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,50m above normal water levelTunnelsThere are four tunnels, at Ham, Revin, Verdun and Koeurs.
Canal de la Marne au Rhin Ouest
This is the direct route. Just before Toul you will be on this canal.
This might be an option when you run out of time.
At PK 272.4 on the Canal de la Meuse, you will enter the Canal de la Marne au Rhin Ouest at PK 111.3 (Junction with Canal de la Meuse).
This is at "48° 42′ 52.72″ N, 5° 41′ 23.76″ E"
This canal also gives you the posibility to enter the Rhine at Strasbourg!C. de la Marne au RhinFull LengthApprox. 313 KilomtersLength Troussey ToulApprox. 20 KilomtersLength Moselle RiverApprox. 25 km The canalised river Moselle, entered through a new lock, from Toul to Frouard (a distance of 25km, slightly longer than by the original canal)BeamThe maximum beam is 5,13mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,60m above normal water levelTunnelsThere is one tunnel, at PK120.6.
Moselle
Welcome on the Moselle. We enter the Moselle at PK 369.5 (Junction with Canal de la Marne au Rhin, western section, l/b (350m link canal with one lock))
From here, we go "up north" but in the "Afvaart" heading for Germany. This connection channel is at "48° 41′ 02.65″ N, 5° 54′ 13.57″ E"From PK 361 we are truly on the Moselle river.
La Moselle CanaliseeFull LengthApprox. 394 KilomtersLength Toul - Lux/DEApprox. 152 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 6mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.50m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 4,40m above normal water level
As seen on the VLOGS of the Parel, you've seen that they had to take a detour to be able to continue their trip. This section provides the basic information for this detour.
Canal de la Meuse
We enter this at Givet.
This the detour that the Parel had to take.
The first part of the canal is also known as the Canal de L'Est.
At (PK 96.3) is the junction with Canal des Ardennes Écluse de meuse (Pont-à-Bar)
This is at "49° 41′ 38.44″ N, 4° 49′ 42.95″ E"Canal de la MeuseLengthApprox. 272 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 5,20mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,50m above normal water levelTunnelsThere are two tunnels on this stretch, at Ham and Revin.
Canal des Ardennes
This canal is the first stretch of the 140 km detour.
At PK 96.3 on the Canal de la Meuse, you will enter the Canal des Ardennes at PK 0.0 (Junction with Canal de la Meuse).
This is at "49° 41′ 38.44″ N, 4° 49′ 42.95″ E"C. des ArdennesFull LengthApprox. 313 KilomtersPont-à-Bar - AsfeldApprox. 88 KilomtersLength Moselle RiverApprox. 25 km The canalised river Moselle, entered through a new lock, from Toul to Frouard (a distance of 25km, slightly longer than by the original canal)BeamThe maximum beam is 5,20mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,50m above normal water level
Canal latéral à l’Aisne
At Ecluse n.14 de Vieux-les-Asfeld the Canal des Ardennes changes into Canal latéral à l’Aisne
This lock is at "49° 26′ 55.14″ N, 4° 05′ 42.81″ E"Canal latéral à l’AisneFull LengthApprox. 51 KilomtersAsfeld - Berry-au-BacApprox. 19 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 5,20mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,50m above normal water level
Canal de l’Aisne à la Marne
At the basin at Berry-au-Bac, we have to make a left turn into the Canal de l’Aisne à la Marne
Here we enter Écluse n°1 | Berry-au-Bac at "49° 23′ 57.43″ N, 3° 54′ 17.47″ E"
We follow the entire length of the canal to Condé-sur-Marne where we will enter Canal latéral à la Marne by turning port (left).C. de l’Aisne à la MarneFull LengthApprox. 58 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 5,20mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,50m above normal water level
Canal latéral à la Marne
At the Junction with Canal de l’Aisne à la Marne (PK 48.4) we enter the Canal latéral à la Marne at "49° 02′ 27.83″ N, 4° 10′ 50.50″ E"
We follow the 48.4 kilometers of the canal to Vitry-le-François where we will enter Canal de la Marne au Rhin by turning to port (left).C. latéral à la MarneFull LengthApprox. 67 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 5,20mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,70m above normal water level
Canal de la Marne au Rhin
Now we are on our way to Toul!
At PK 0.0 on the Canal latéral à la Marne, you will enter the Canal de la Marne au Rhin at PK 0.9.
This is at "48° 43′ 48.54″ N, 4° 36′ 24.37″ E"
At Ecluse n°1 de Troussey, we pick up on the original route.
This is at "48° 42′ 52.72″ N, 5° 41′ 23.76″ E"
This canal also gives you the posibility to enter the Rhine at Strasbourg! This might be an option when you run out of time.C. de la Marne au RhinFull LengthApprox. 313 KilomtersWestern Section LengthApprox. 131 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 5,13mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.80m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 3,60m above normal water levelTunnelsThere is a 5km tunnel at PK 86 – PK 92 Mauvages, and a 0.75km tunnel at PK 121 Foug
Moselle
Welcome on the Moselle. We enter the Moselle at PK 369.5 (Junction with Canal de la Marne au Rhin, western section, l/b (350m link canal with one lock))
From here, we go "up north" but in the "Afvaart" heading for Germany. This connection channel is at "48° 41′ 02.65″ N, 5° 54′ 13.57″ E"From PK 361 we are truly on the Moselle river.
La Moselle CanaliseeFull LengthApprox. 394 KilomtersLength Toul - Lux/DEApprox. 152 KilomtersBeamThe maximum beam is 6mDraughtThe maximum authorised draught is 1.50m throughoutHeadroomThe minimum headroom (air draught) is 4,40m above normal water level
These are the 5 (five) countries we are going to visit. Please use the links to get to the specific chapters (or routes, or legs) of each country.
We added, for good measurement, the ISO Country and the International country-code for calling
Of all five countries, we’ll only be in Luxembourg for a short stretch: just the section of the Moselle that lies wedged between France, Germany, and Luxembourg. It starts at Écluse d'Apach (FR) and ends at Wasserbillig (LUX), where the Sauer River flows into the Moselle. On this approximately 36 km long stretch, we’ll be boating right along the border between Luxembourg and Germany. More about this will follow in the section covering this part of the route.
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