Barge Date: 01-13-2020
Yes, Barge Time is Approaching
It is not too soon to be thinking about returning to the barge. But to confess, I think about the boat every day. Would love to be on board at this very minute.
Preparations for our return are happening. Purchased the French license today. This is for 365 days but we will probably return late August or September. The little projects to be done in the shop are mostly completed. I have been working on a very large china hutch since September and it has literately taken up a big spot in the shop. I am doing the finishing work now and hope to deliver it to Andrew and Christina in February if it is not cold it Pittsburgh.
I do get some boat satisfaction everyday because I can look at Lionel via a camera that is positioned at the marina. I left the boat with a bright LED light shining out the port window to tell me the electric is on so batteries are being maintained. Here are 2 pictures
Obviously my neighbor has copied me. Lionel is the lower light.
You might think this concern for the boat is over the top. But in December a new built barge sank under unusual circumstances. The barge was tied up properly and supposedly under the eye of marina people but things happened. This part of France was getting much needed rain but perhaps too much in a short period. It happened during the night. A power station has a dam with water behind it and the people in charge decided there was a need to release a big slug of water during the night and it would seem without considering what would happen down stream.
The barge was tied along with others but with the owner back in the UK. By the time the alarm was raised water was coming up very fast. Those on board their boats had a lot to do very quickly and did not have the opportunity to adjust the lines for this ill-fated barge. Tied fast, the boat rose with the water and this caused the port side of the boat to go under and it began receiving water. The water penetrated the interior and she went under; not even visible.
But there is more bad news for the owner. The fine insurance he has seems to be a scam. Some Spanish company that has been identified at crooked but this is news to the owner. Perhaps he has a case against the fellows upstream that caused the rush of water but that is somewhere in the future. Big expense to bring the barge up. It is floating now but life will never be the same.
And then there is the general risk that some clown will come along at night looking for a barge to set adrift. This year I will be using some chain for a secure hold to the shore. If I will be gone for a number of days and I am on a river I plan to drop the anchor and some chain.
I had the marina do an alteration to some pipes in the bilge. This location is the low point for water on board. Two of the pipes had very small taps and a large pipe that brings water from the bedroom storage had no way to drain. So I asked for changes that will allow me to connect a hose so I can drain the system completely. I have an old 24v pump from the old water pressure system and a 24v outlet 1 meter away so I am ready to go.
