The BOLLARDS that we tie up to are an unusual but blank canvas to the people who spend their time near them. The stretch of canal on the Nivernais going up to the Etang du Baie hosts 36 locks in about 68 km. After the Etang du Baie we went down via what is known as the Sardy Staircase from Port Brûlé to Sardy-les-Epiry. 17 écluses in 4 km and every one uniquely painted and decorated. In the summer artists inhabit this stretch and sell their pieces to the 'captive' boaters. Unfortunately the season had ended when we arrived so we did not see much but the bollards, painted houses and the odd sculpture. Some were very odd!
I wondered how they could sell anything because the time spent in the locks was very short. I was literally running to the next lock to catch the ropes and ran in to one place to check out the unmanned pottery store and had time to capture two pictures. No time to find the owner or select a piece before the boat had to be boarded again. We found out how they do it: they hold you 'captive' in the lock until you make a purchase! One fellow did it to us - he kept us in a lock while he played his mandolin- like instrument.
Painted Bollards:
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