Let's see if I can convey a bit of what my friends and I experienced as we went along the Burgundy Canal.
A common scene is approaching a lock. On our five days of cruising, we passed through 41 locks.
Eric is the captain of Grand Cru. He steers the barge into the lock with perhaps two inches of clearance on each side. That takes tremendous skill.
Arnaud is usually at the front of the barge. He uses hand signals to tell the captain how close the barge is to the front of the lock. When the barge is in place, Arnaud ties it to big posts, then hops ashore.
He starts letting water into the lock by opening the front gates a little bit at a time.
Each day, a pair of local workers arrive at the locks and help to open the front gates to let water flow in. When the water level inside the lock equals the level ahead in the canal, the gates are opened fully so the barge can move ahead.
A few locks have electric controls, but most depend on human muscles to push the gates fully open.
More tomorrow.
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