the Midi Canal: locks

We can't talk about the Midi Canal without sooner or later talking about locks.


Locks raise or lower boats by securing a chamber in which the water level can be manually adjusted.


Boats (up to four at a time) enter the chamber which is then sealed off.




Water then either
a) enters, or
b) is drained from the chamber, depending on which direction you're going, viz:


This allows boats to travel between stretches of river which flow on different levels.

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Going down in a lock, before:


And after:

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Three views of filling a lock:

I.


II.


III.

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Getting through a lock involves a rapid burst of concentrated effort. There are several tasks which need to be completed almost simultaneously. Ideally, the successful negotiation of a lock is probably a job for no less than five people:


* one person to steer the boat into and out of the lock
* two persons to stand on land and catch the ropes thrown to them by the
* two persons standing on the boat who hold the ropes again after they've been secured, viz:


With only two people on our boat, we had our work cut out for us.

This is a view of the Captain holding both ropes while at the same time somehow managing to steer the launch and simultaneously operate a camera. First Mate L is meanwhile somewhere on land, probably busy sunning herself, or filing her nails:

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Locks typically raise or lower the water level only about ten feet, so sometimes more than one lock is needed to bring the boat to the level of the next stretch of canal. We passed through a few double-locks and even some triple-locks.

I have a 45 minute video of us passing through a triple lock, with the camera secured to the bow. Maybe we can watch it next time you're over.

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Landlubbers often gather to see how it's done.