Today would have been my brother Bernie's 75th birthday. Given how much he enjoyed his previous trips to Europe and some cruises, I'm sure he would have enjoyed being on the barge. However, it was his death at age 62 in 2009 that made me fully realise the precariousness of life, and the need to do things before it is too late, that contributed to me buying the barge in 2010. So perhaps if he was still alive, I wouldn't have a barge! Who knows?

We left the Ecluse 29 mooring earlier than we really wanted to, at 0920h, because we received word that we needed to take the van to the Iveco workshop in Dijon on August 11 for an insurance assessment that was required by the GAN insurance company before they would reimburse us for any loss or damage from the theft. So we headed down the Saone until we got to Ecluse 31 at Pompierre, where we spotted some interested onlookers, with their master. As often is the case with such sightings, they were in the midst of a long summer walk up the river, and had just stopped for a rest.

We continued on uneventfully, until we reached ecluse 32 at Clerval. As we were entering the lock, I noticed a tree branch that had fallen into the canal just upstream of the lock, and was now obstructing our entry into the lock. I entered slowly, nudging the branch along as I went. The branch was now sideways across the lock and threatening to jam and stop our progress.

As we were contemplating what to do next, two cyclists, who we had observed taking photos of the boat a little upstream, arrived at the lock, wondering why we had not fully entered the lock. We explained the problem, and then they got about helping Rita to remove the branch. We were so impressed with their willingness to help, we gave them a bottle of red to enjoy with their evening meal.

After thanking Florence and Emmanuel again, we continued our journey south. After our trip to the Source of the Doubs just two days ago, we were now even more impressed by the magnitude of the Doubs on this leg of the journey. What a difference a few hundred kilometres makes!

To conclude a very eventful morning, we stopped at Ecluse 35 at l'Ermite for lunch, as we had on the trip up the Doubs. Once again, Rita took advantage of the clear water to go for a swim after lunch.

We thought we had had enough encounters at ecluses for the day, but after lunch as we went through Ecluse 36 at Hyèvre Magny, we were stopped in our tracks by a greeting from Jerome and Stephanie, the same couple who greeted us at the same lock in 2019! After our meeting with Volker a couple of weeks ago, these coincidences are becoming commonplace!! Jerome still works for VNF, but Steph was laid off during Covid. They were by themselves today, but they suggested we meet in Baume les Dames for apero drinks this evening, when they would bring their son and daughter along to say hello. So we cruised into port at Baume les Dames later that afternoon, and at around 1800h, we heard a knock on the wheelhouse door. The two kids have certainly grown a lot in three years. But they remembered that day in 2019 very well. The daughter presented us with a drawing she had done for us of a koala, and we reciprocated with a little clip-on koala toy (which she gleefully accepted). The son was just as talkative as last time, but his topics have changed a little and this time I learned lots about the latest computer game that he is playing!

After we had finished talking and having a drink and swapping latest contact details, they departed for another family engagement. We decided it was too late to cook dinner on board, and were lucky to grab a table at the Port Cafe for dinner. A very relaxing end to an eventful day.