Onward and upward

We sailed at about 8.30, in sunshine finally, with the washing drying on the rails. To our surprise there was another boat at the first lock – yesterday we saw none at all. It was a small German craft, but small or not it scooted along rapidly in the river – faster than us, which meant they prepared all the locks for our stately arrival.

We reached Baume les Dames at lunchtime and found a convenient mooring, just beside the bar, managing to dock reasonably neatly in front of the critical lunching audience. The plan had been to continue to Clerval for the night, but we had heard rumours of problems there and a phone call revealed that the port is closed. It is too far to get to Isle sur Doubs in the afternoon, so we decided to stay, and made a foray with the Shirley shopping trolley to a nearby SuperU supermarket.