Thursday 9th September 2010 Cercy-la-Tour. Day off.

Heavy showers and sunny spells. We took a walk up to the lock as the resident lady keeper was locking boats through. Mike hadn’t brought his car keys and wanted to go shopping as soon as we’d spoken to her so he went back for them and I carried on walking up to the lock. Told her we’d got a small problem needed to stay a few days extra. She said it was no problem, just make sure the hireboats can get at the water tap. The reason for the  “three days max stay on the pontoon” was due to four boats staying for a month and using the electric to do boat fitting – they had to be told to go. I asked if they were English or Dutch and was surprised when she said, no. no, French! Bizarre! No need to see them at the Mairie – she was the boss! Great. Gave her a hand with the locking while we chatted. We went to get groceries from Carrefour Market in Decize. They’d put a new tarmac surface on the car park, it had new white lines and everything – but no trees now, although the diamond shaped boxes were there ready for new ones. Bought the groceries and went back to the boat. We were locked out. Mike hadn’t got the keys and I couldn’t find the spares which we kept in the glove box in the car. The thieves must have taken them when they stole stuff out of the car at Episy. THAT’S ANNOYING! It started to pour down with rain so we sat and fumed in the car. Mike looked in the magnetic key box with the spare car key, just the door key for the car. Back on the boat with the car toolbox Mike had no option but to undo the fixing on the side door hatch then break the bolts to get in. We missed a phonecall, it was John answering Mike’s message that he’d left on his French mobile. No sign of the keys. He must have dropped them outside. He went to look. I started putting all the groceries away. Nothing. Perhaps someone found them and handed then to the lock keeper. We said we would ask after lunch. A LeBoat moored stern to the pontoon behind us and Mike spoke to the Brits on board. He loaned them some Araldite to glue the fixings back in a mooring cleat they’d managed to rip off. After lunch we walked up to the lock, the lock keeper was away working boats through further up the canal. The hireboater had told Mike she does at least four locks (actually she does five), rushing up and down in her van. Mike decided to cut the locks off as we had no spares keys he said he would have to buy new padlocks, it would be cheaper than having new spare keys cut. I gave him a hand to hold the locks while he used a cutting disc in an angle-grinder and cut the loops. Amazing how easily we did that. He went to the Brico in Decize and came back with three ordinary locks and a keyless number code operated padlock for the front door. No need to take any keys with us now, just remember the number! Great idea. Mike fixed new bolts on the side hatch. Mike went out to change the TV aerial over to the French one and saw the keeper. He asked her if any keys had been handed in – yes, a cyclist had found them by where we’d parked the car - they were at the Syndicate d’Initiative office by the car park (which was now closed) so she said go to the Mairie in the morning – it’s up by the church. No call from Paul (who wants Mike to go and do a couple of days work on his boat at St Jean-de-Losne and which is the main reason we’re on the pontoon at Cercy) and nothing yet from John.