21 July 2013

Rowing a boat at Chenonceau

Last Sunday afternoon we drove over to Chenonceau to walk along the river up to the château.


As you'll see from my photos, the water level in the Cher River is very low right now,
despite all the rain we had over the first six months of the year.


Still, that didn't stop people from renting rowboats and paddling their way up and down the river.


The water was flowing quite rapidly, and people were having a hard time rowing back upstream.
I guess it was good exercise for them.


For us over-60s, the river walk provided plenty of exercise, with no crowds at all.
It was a pleasant afternoon, and seeing the Renaissance-era Château de Chenonceau is always a treat.


Along with the Eiffel Tower and Notre-Dame de Paris, this château is one of the most distinctive
and widely recognized buildings in France.


Going to Chenonceau was a pretty nice way to spend a sunny Bastille Day afternoon.

7 comments:

  1. We've been amazed at how quickly river levels have dropped in little more than 2 weeks of hot weather after 6 months of seemingly non-stop rain.

    Lovely photos of Chenonceau.

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  2. There was an article in yesterday's Nouvelle Republic about the levels on the Cher...
    apparently four of the barrages that maintain level were damaged in the winter floods and all that the authorities have done is shrug...
    their budget is 350,000€ per year and it will cost around 250K to mend each one...
    it has hit the tourist cruisers particularly badly... to the tune of around 3200€ per week in one case!!

    with the Claise, however, the vannes are still open.... and apparently will be for the next year at the shortest!!

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  3. Thanks for that info, Tim. I don't read the NR and I probably should, but that would mean going to town to buy it every day. Web site, I guess.

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  4. Hopefully, those canoeists don't have to row back upstream. Usually someone from the rent shop will pick them up downstream. Low water is a nightmare in a canoe because you get stuck and have to get out of the boat, and then hop back in. That said, canoes are a lot of fun.

    Chenonceau is so photogenic and your camera does a good job capturing her.

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  5. Oh boy! More photos for my students to see :) Must have been a great outing :)

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  6. I'm wondering if my classmate who has booked a cruise from Paris to the Loire in September should be getting worried? Perhaps the cruise ships will have enough water by then?

    Living where you do and having the options for the strolls you describe in so wonderful. Lucky for you.

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  7. Il est vraiment unique et intimidant ce château. J'aimerais le visiter un jour...

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