Canal de Bourgogne

Yet again, now at the end of the day, and I am writing this with the rain beating down on us again! We are parked alongside the Canal de Bourgogne admiring the pleasant surroundings with many other motorhomes and canal boats. 

This morning we stopped off for a coffee at the delightful town of Joigny which is situated on the River Yonne. We had visited the town before but we couldn’t help ourselves, we had to have another look around. It is a Burgundian town that has a mix of  the medieval and the renaissance at heart, and lies in an idyllic setting. The craftsmanship in the timber building and the carvings in the church gives you a glimpse of the richness of those times. On the hills overlooking the town we caught our first glimpse of the vineyards that have made Burgundy famous. 

AtJoigny we picked up the trail of the Canal de Bourgogne and followed this to Migennes where we stopped by the canal to have some lunch. Whilst here I went looking for the Mosaïque de Migennes, thinking it was part of an archeological site, but alas, the mosaic was hanging in the wall in the tourist office! 

After leaving Migennes we followed the course of the canal, shaded at times by the trees of Napoleon. The Emperor Napoleon is credited with originating the policy of lining French roads with trees, to enable his soldiers to march in the shade (not to extend a similar courtesy to invading German armies, as an old joke has it).

A few kilometres further along the canal was the town of St Florentine, another medieval village, now along the Canal de Bourgogne. We stopped at a lovely spot right on the canal. A very pleasant afternoon and evening spent here.