LINKS: Read more about the experiences of some of the people from around the world who have cruised the canals & rivers of Europe at the helm of their own Dutch barge or canal cruiser.

By Boat Through The French Canals and Rivers: Brenda & John Davison
We are Brenda and John Davison, a retired couple from the Wirral, UK, who keep a boat on the French canals, exploring the inland waterways of France. Over the years we have gained a lot of knowledge and information about using the French inland waterways and this website is designed to share this with other boat users.

The Hamiltons; a family cruise on the Canal du Nivernais
Our family rented, piloted, and slept on a 13 meter canal boat for a week in Burgundy. We traveled 90 kilometers up the Canal du Nivernais, through about 50 locks, 6 drawbridges, and some of the most beautiful countryside and villages we have ever seen.

"Locking the canal" a video by the Hamilton family on the Canal du Midi
Other videos of the Midi are also found on this YouTube page.

"Island Rover" is a Rosborough 246 from Canada, now cruising in Europe
Barbara and John traveled the waterways of eastern Canada before shipping their boat to Europe. Read their Journal of arrival at Cherbourg, France and up the Seine to Paris, then on to Belgium and the Netherlands.

Canal Cruising with Peter and Judy; self-skippered rental boats
In 2003 we started our Canal Cruising with a 10 day cruise in Eire on the Shannon.Two years later we spent 20 days cruising the Nivernais Canal in Burgundy France. 2006 saw us moving north to Holland, this time exploring Friesland. 2007 will see us cruise the Midi Canal with two other couples.

Our Views from the Wheelhouse; Life At 5 Mile Per Hour On The Canals and Rivers Of Europe
CAPRI is a Dutch Barge built in 1916 in Amsterdam. The hull is Dutch iron and the superstructure is steel. Capri is 16.9 meters long and 4 meters wide. The engine is a Dutch DAF 525, 4 cylinder diesel burning bio-diesel fuel.

Bill & Nancy's life on a barge in France
Since arriving in France in January of 2000, we have learned how to navigate the inland waterways of Europe, and how to live on and maintain a barge. For 6 delightful years, our home port, where we spent our winters, was Roanne, a city in the Rhône-Alpes region of France, not too far from Lyon. In 2007, we had the good fortune to be offered a mooring in the port in Paris that is located near the Bastille, and our barge has now become our apartment in Paris.

Barging Europe
If you are interested in the details of how to go about owning a Dutch barge in France or cruising