The document provides details from a trip along the French canals from Arles to Calais over 24 days, including statistics about the journey. It describes navigating the Rhone River, passing through 12 vast locks up to 0.5 meters wide. It notes challenges fitting the narrowboat Zigmundo van Dogs through locks and the 4km Balesmes tunnel. It concludes with overall statistics for the 3,700 mile journey from Arles to the home port in Calais over 27 months, including the longest distance and most locks traveled in a single day.

1. The French canals - 2008

2. Planning is quite complex

5. Into the Rhone France’s biggest river Current 2-4 knots (against us) 12 vast locks Up to 0.5M wide

6. Arles

7. The Zigmundo van Dogs

8. Le pont d’Avignon

9. Rhone lock - montant

10. Rhone lock – half full

11. Rhone lock - full

12. Rhone lock - departure

13. Canopy half-rigged

14. The peniches are a tight fit in the locks

15. The mighty Bollene is 23m deep We were in and out in 15 minutes

16. Lyon

17. Our lock

18. The Saône

19. Into the Canal de la Marne à la Saône

20. … now renamed

22. Canal locks – smaller, but harder work

23. The donglers

24. Turbulence as the lock fills

25. Ben helping with the gates. Many locks fill to the brim…

26. The Zigmundo van Dogs … so a couple of doormats come in handy (€2.50 each)

28. Lunch stop 12-1.30pm

29. Into the Balesmes tunnel – 4km

30. Every ecluse has a cottage

31. The ‘Freycinet’ barge exactly fits the locks – 38.5 x 5.2m

32. Froncles – electricity, hot showers, car boot sale, supermarché

34. Through Reims to the north…

35. Overnight escape from the Grand Gabarit at Corbehem

38. 14 September 2008 – back to SYH 27 months after we left