Villeneuve les Beziers: 43°19’02.6″N 3°16’52.3″E

Agde (Canal Lock): 43°18’54.1″N 3°29’57.1″E

A significant structure on this section of the Canal du Midi is the Ouvrages du Libron.

PHOTO ABOVE – ENTRANCE TO OUVERAGES DU LIBRON

Built in 1855, it is designed to allow the Libron River to traverse the Canal du Midi. At the point of intersection, the Libron is more or less at the same level as the Canal du Midi so a traditional aqueduct was not an option – especially after heavy rains when the volume of water in the River Libron would increase significantly & cause flooding problems in the canal.

Our next stop along the canal after we left Villeneuve des Beziers was a round lock on the outskirts of Agde. When the canals were very active boaters could exit the lock & head straight for the Mediterranean Sea, only a few kilometers away. We only had one choice & that was to stay on the Canal du Midi because charter boats are not allowed access to the sea.

The photo above of the round lock is a panoramic shot I took with my iPhone.  It doesn’t do the lock “justice”. The lock master here had pretty good English & when he saw the Canadian flag on our bow he called out “vive le Canada”. I responded with “vive la France”. I asked the lockmaster where I should tie up because we were the only boat in the lock. He replied that it’s a political decision for you – feel free to go left or right!

I decided to tie up on the left side because I am left handed.

Shortly after we exited the lock we entered the River Herault & followed it upstream for a few kilometers before reentering the final strech of the Canal du Midi.

PHOTO ABOVE – RIVER HERAULT

it was strange being on this river after spending so many days in the narrow Canal du Midi. The water quality was much better & there was plenty of room to maneuver.

We arrived at the final lock on the Canal du Midi at Agde around 3 o’clock in the afternoon and were not sure how far it was before we reached the Etang de Thau so we decided to simply go through the lock and then tied up for the night at that spot.

There wasn’t much around us at the lock other than a canal-side campground for area residents so Bruce and I decided to go for a walk to try and find a grocery store to pick up a few small things, plus some cold drinks and maybe a bottle of wine or two. We had an epic walk through a very busy industrial/commercial area only to find that the store we were interested in only sold fruit, vegetables & raw meat – no wine or carbonated drinks. Oh well, we had a good walk & there’s always another store somewhere along the canal.

Tomorrow we cross the Etang du Thau!

Cheers!