By now, you have likely heard about the horrific flooding that hit parts of Europe. Germany suffered the worst – but parts of the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and Switzerland are also under water.
France escaped without too much damage. Here in Auxonne, the rain was almost non-stop – and it came down hard. It was enough to crumple our Bimini. Pretty minor stuff compared to the loss of life to the north of us.
The tubes are mangled. The fabric is ripped. But we count ourselves fortunate. Neighbouring countries are still reporting hundreds of people missing and feared dead.
Some of that water to the north of us has been coming this way. The Saône is flowing fast. And the water levels are rising. In Gray, less than 40 kilometres from here, the dock is underwater. Friends who moored there were awoken in the middle of the night and had to move fast. They had to untie and get out of there. The dock is concrete – not a floating pontoon like we have. Being tied to concrete with the water rising quickly can quickly become a disaster.
Here in Auxonne, we are safely moored inside the Port de Plaisance. But that strip of land that allows boaters on two other pontoons to make it to land may not be there in the morning. As you can see, if the water rises a half-metre overnight, folks on the other pontoons will be stuck on their boats until the water recedes.
We have found a boatyard in St. Jean-de-Losne that can repair our Bimini. The owner says to bring Aleau there and he’ll look after it. He also points out that the Saône is flowing so fast it is dangerous to be on it. Boats are forbidden to be on the river. So, we wait. It is not a hardship. We are lucky to have not suffered as so many others have.
POST SCRIPT:
Yup, by early the next morning, the Saône had risen enough to flood the piece of land joining two of the pontoons to the rest of the marina.
As little as a few centimetres of quickly flowing water can sweep the feet out from under someone. For now, a few brave individuals continue to use the path. (Check in a day or two to see if that bicycle is still there.)
