Ars-sur-Moselle (on the move again)

SATURDAY 3 - TUESDAY 6 SEPTEMBER

Evening on the lake in Metz

We really enjoyed our stay in Metz although having a dog meant we couldn’t do much sightseeing in the heat.  Walking in the woods and along shady canals and rivers is fine but it’s not fair to make Buddy walk on the hot pavements of a town.  Saying that, we had plenty of entertainment on the lake where we were moored.  Hot air balloons were able to take off over the water during the mornings and evenings when it wasn’t too breezy.  One of the best flight days was on Saturday when in the morning there was a layer of mist, so the balloons seemed to disappear from view for a short period as they ascended.  

Mist clearing above the balloon launch site

Nice touch by one of the balloon owners

The weekend, of course, was busy and in the evening the local rowing and kayak club rigged lights and balloons on their boats and paraded up and down the waters through Metz.  There was a live Zulu-like drum beat on a dragon boat and even a fire juggling display on another.  Other activities included white water raft rides and rowing displays and also, in the evenings, various artistic light installations around Metz.

Rides on the rapids were 5€ per person and just after I took this picture the large inflatable tipped over spilling all the occupants bar one:

Here's a couple of pictures of Saturday night’s rowing boats with helium filled balloons and solar lights:

Those of you who know or have visited Metz will recall the wonderful golden colour of the stone used for many of the buildings and bridges.  It is known as Jaumont stone and is quarried in a handful of sites within 15 km of the city; here are some of the buildings:

Law courts

Covered market

Hôtel de ville

Opera house, theatre and library

A large part of the cathedral was under scaffolding 

Many of the grand houses in the town had ornate doors and doorways and we particularly liked the detail on this one:

We also found the interior of the 6^th century Templars’ chapel striking:

On Monday we had a pleasant walk around the city walls and we were surprised how much of them are still standing.  Several gates could still be seen, the most impressive being the German gate:

Porte des Allemands

Walking under the city walls

In places, the walls also ran alongside the rivers Seille and Moselle providing additional defensive protection:

The river Seille that joins the Moselle in Metz

We cannot leave Metz without including a picture of the only lavoir we found:

As for boat jobs, the main thing to be done before setting off was to replace the four leisure batteries which I did on Sunday morning.  We’d bought four new ones in the UK and brought them back to France as batteries are more expensive over here.  Unusually for me, the job went without any hitches other than being backbreaking work made worse by having to do it in 30+ degree heat.  Time will tell of course as to whether the job did go well. 

With the raft of canal closures, we’ve decided to carry on up the Moselle to Nancy thus completing a circuit including the river Sarre and the Luxembourg and French sections of the Moselle. In Nancy we plan to join the canal de la Marne au Rhin Est which is the only canal still open in NE France.  We travelled that canal earlier in the year and know plenty of secluded moorings where we can stop for a week or so at a time to finish off painting the boat.  We still have to repaint the blue on the sides and also the black on the hull above the water line.

WEDNESDAY 7 SEPTEMBER

A couple of hours of rain were forecast around breakfast time on Wednesday, but the day dawned lovely and sunny as we made our final preparations for leaving.  We had a few errands to do around town such as picking up a new French courtesy flag for the boat and popping to the post office and after saying our goodbyes to our Swiss neighbours we set off around 11.  Rather than heading for the main channel of the Moselle we joined a backwater that re-joined the river about three kilometres further upstream.  It was a welcome change from being on the rivers of the last few months as well as being quiet and pretty.

We only had one lock to go up before reaching our destination and we were rather expecting that, due to the water shortages, we would be told to wait for other boats before being allowed through.  To our surprise we got a “C’est prêt” response to our radio request and sure enough, when the lock came into view, the lock certainly was ready with the lights on green, and we had the whole 185 metre lock to ourselves.

Going into the lock at Ars-sur-Moselle…

…and leaving

Soon after the lock we were passing some of the remains of a 22 km long Roman aqueduct that was built to deliver fresh water to Metz.  Several arches are still standing either side of the Moselle and, as it was one of the sights we wanted to see, we moored at a spot that Karen had found out about a kilometre or so further on.

Passing a few arches on the west side of the river

We tied to an old bollard and a tree and as there was no sign of life, we let Buddy lie outside whilst we had lunch.  During the afternoon we went for a walk further upstream, again with Buddy off the lead.  After a while we noticed what looked like goat droppings on the path and as they were fresh, we decided to put Buddy on his lead.  It was just as well we did as we came across a herd of goats wandering through the trees towards us.  

Karen had heard a bell a minute or so before and we soon realised the largest goat had one around its neck.  It did mean that Buddy would have to be tied up until we moved on, and we saw several of them came down to investigate the boat later in the afternoon.

Moored in the lock cut at Ars-sur-Moselle

On Wednesday we cruised nine kilometres up one lock.

THURSDAY 8 SEPTEMBER

The summer weather broke overnight and even though the much-needed rain hadn’t arrived yet, the temperature had dropped and was forecast to remain in the low 20s for some while.  This was good news for us and Buddy, and after breakfast we set out for a walk to see the remains of the Roman aqueduct that stand on both sides of the Moselle.  On our way we walked alongside the disused canal de Jouy which used to run from the Moselle to a port in the centre of Metz with Freycinet (40 metre) locks.  When the locks on the river were enlarged in 1964 to take the boats it does nowadays, the canal was closed, and the port was filled in and is now the large square in front of Metz station.  

The restored remains of the aqueduct on the eastern side of the canal run through the middle of the large village of Jouy-aux-Arches.  The aqueduct is rather incongruous in its modern setting with houses and apartments built alongside. 

From information boards we learnt that in the 16^th & 17^th centuries houses were built under the arches to take advantage of two readymade walls.  None of these houses remain, the final few being destroyed in WWII; however, some old postcards survive.

Pictures of old postcards shown on information boards

The aqueduct was built in the second half of the 2^nd century and was used for 350 years supplying water to Metz running for 22 km including 8.5 km underground.  It was mainly destroyed in the Middle Ages; the stone being used for local buildings. 

Another view of the remains

We also learnt that there were two channels on the aqueduct so that one could be in use when the other was under maintenance.  These channels were covered with a pitched tiled roof making the whole structure three metres higher than can be seen today.  Although it was nothing like the scale of the pont du Gard in the south of France it was certainly very impressive and well worth the visit.

Before I finish here's the only picture that we have of us with our three grandchildren.  It was taken when we were on holiday in the Cotswolds at the end of July a couple of minutes before we had a buggy race.

Dexter, Olyvia and Ellis

By the way there'll be two more grandchildren by the end of the year 😁