The Longest Day

At 3am our peaceful weekend was shattered by the ominous noise of boat engines and ropes creaking. Commercial traffic was on the move already. Massive ghostly shapes thundered past us in the dark at regular intervals. You soon got to know when they were coming. Everything is still and quiet and suddenly Lobelia fidgets on her ropes like a bored puppy on a lead. Then you hear the noise of an engine and as the noise approaches Lobelia pulls at her ropes in an effort to escape the danger.
At 6am we got up and watched in amazement as these leviathans motored past our "tiny" boat. In the photo above you can see Lobelia huddled next to the quay.
At 0730 a man appeared on the quay and politely asked us if we were staying very long as a barge delivery was due. No sooner than he had said it, the "delivery" came into view. We made a rapid departure and at 0745 we were out on the river in the thick of commercial traffic which came in all shapes, sizes and speeds.
Being overtaken by a larger vessel is no fun. Your boat gets sucked in towards the overtaking vessel. Their prop steals the water from beneath you and renders your prop and rudders useless. An 80m laden barge called Merengue overtook us and Lobelia went from 8 knots to 3 knots and then got dragged along by Merengue at 9.3 knots in a matter of moments. Andy had only just got Lobelia back under control when another unladen barge, scarily named Tsunami, overtook both us and Merengue. It was some ride!
By 9am we reached our first lock - Sluis St Baafsvijve (136m x 16m), which isn't easy to say on the VHF when you want to ask if you can come through. Masses of boats jostled for a spot in the lock queue. We watched in horror as we realised that one ship had reversed into the lock from the other side and completely filled it. Both Andy and I felt apprehensive. The boys were oblivious and enjoyed watching everything.


We entered the lock and shared it with Merengue and another laden barge. Thankfully we did not disgrace ourselves or our Red Ensign. Twenty minutes later and the guillotine style lock gates raised, Lobelia was spared and we departed the lock, feeling a little more confident in our abilities.

We continued on our way, with a 4 hour stop in Harelbeke before the lock.
Continued along the River Leie and hoped to stop at Kortrijk / Courtrai but, due to extensive river works we could not find a suitable mooring.
Finally moored up at 1900 by the bridge in Menen /Menin which is an ancient citadel town on the border with France.
We took a stroll after tea and crossed the footbridge leading to the Capitainerie and France. But, France was closed - "it is a private party" - so we walked back to Belgium and drank beer at the swimming pool.
Today had lived up to its title as the longest day.