The morning was fine and sunny when we woke, and over breakfast we realised that we were only a short distance south of the town of Ray-sur-Saone, which we visited by car last week. So we thought that perhaps we could ride our bikes up there to see the town from the perspective of the waterways. So we unloaded our bikes (not easy getting them from the top of the cabin roof at the front of the barge onto the short, narrow pontoon along the back half pf the barge), and set off for Ray-sur-Saone in mid-morning. The ride along the canal and then the river was very pleasant, and as we neared Ray-sur-Saone we could see the Chateau at the top of the hill.

As we got even closer, the relationship between the Chateau and the town below became more apparent.

We cycled around the town and checked out the camping car area, and then went down behind the houses towards the river to see what was there. And we were surprised, to say the least. There was a nice grassed area with picnic tables, waste bins and lighting, and five small mooring docks on the river, one of which was occupied. Although the dock area itself was small (like at Heuilley), there looked to be enough space between the docks to accommodate our barge. It seemed like an idyllic location, with no passing traffic, although we were somewhat unsure of the water depth and the ability to turn a 16.7m barge around to be able to head back towards the canalised section and the locks.

After exploring, and measuring, the mooring area for a while, we headed back to the main street and found Chez Yvette. Unlike last week's visit, we decided to have lunch as well as a drink, and were rewarded with a fine homecooked meal that would see us satisfied for the rest of the day.

After we had finished lunch and were waiting for dessert, another couple approached the cafe and sat down for a coffee. As they were leaving, we said hello (since we heard they were speaking German, and thought they might be from the boat already moored at the river). That turned out to be the case, and so we had a conversation about how their experience had been moored there. They were very happy with the mooring, so we talked about boating for a while. At one point they asked what we did in Australia, and we said "Farmers....tree farmers". They asked about our trees and then told us they were also tree farmers in Germany, and the guy was the head of a tree farming association in their area. So we talked more about trees, and got their contact details and website address, given our interest in establishing  a network of farm forestry sites in our area back home. We hope to visit them next year to learn more about how they have gone about their business.

After we finished dessert and coffee, we got back on our bikes and headed back down the Saone, turning left at the junction with the canalised section to go to the town of Charentenay which also appeared to have moorings. But they were nowhere near as good as those in Ray-sur-Saone, so we turned around and headed south again. As we crossed the bridge over the Saone near Ray, we spied this long (40cm) lizard sunning itself on the stone wall of the bridge.

As we rode back down the Saone, we said goodbye to Ray-sur-Saone, but vowed we would return here again next year. We noticed at this time that the sky had taken on a dramatic appearance with interesting cloud formations; too bad these didn't appear later in the day as they could have created a beautirful sunset photo.

As we approached the Port de Savoyeux, we noticed that another boat was moored alongside us. So we went to the Capitainerie to see what was happening, and learnt that the normal occupants of that pontoon had returned earlier than expected, and wanted to reclaim their spot. But they advised us we could stay in port for another night by switching our mooring to face south on the other side of the same pontoon and allow the others to reclaim their spot. So we went back to the boat, apologised to the other people (they were also Swiss), and then told them what we were going to do. They pulled away from our side, we untied our ropes and did a 180degree turn in the canal and re-moored on the other side of the pontoon and they then reversed back into their spot. Simples!

That night we had no need for dinner (after lunch at Chez Yvette), so we just had a drink on the back deck and then returned to our reading as nightfall arrived.