French & Belgian canal system

Would anyone be able to tell me the size limits for boats cruising through French and Belgian canals? I need to discover whether it is feasible to take a trawler from Rotterdam to the Mediterranean. The dimensions are the following: LOA 12.8 m, beam 4.3 m, draft 1.1 m, vertical clearance from waterline 3.9 m.

Also, if such a trip were possible, I am searching for someone who knows the canal system well enough to accompany us, for a fee of course.

If you want to check out the trawler that needs to make this trip you can see it at http://www.patagoniayachts.com/ It is made by my family's company in Argentina for export to the European Community, and we need an inexpensive way to get the boat to and fro from boat shows.

Thanks for any help you can give me.

Valeria

 

ok, can do email this man who has done lotsa designing and builds for Kiwi boats on the canals, your loa, beam, d, is ok
maxcarter@marine-design.co.nz
or google it

 

French canals

From http://www.hansvandijk.org/AnitaII/inspectie/inspectie.html

These people are speaking from experience.

Translation of the major points:

Maximum height 3.5 meter officially preferably a bit less, water is a bit higher than planned in some canals so 3.35 is more safe. Max depth preferably 1.6m for the older canals.

 

How's your French?

The VNF (Voies Navigables de France) is the official body concerning inland navigation in France. Their website will tell you everything you need to know. The English is a bit odd in places, and I'm not certain you get all the info either, but if you look top right there's a tiny drop down maenu to select which language.

I'm not certain of sizes though.

 

I think you can squeak 3.6m of headroom (airdraft) if you go up the Rhine and then use the Moselle and Canal de L'Est to get to the Rhone. I think 3.9 m will be too much whichever route you choose. It might be worth checking out the cost of a truck ride from Mulhouse to Chalon sur Saone. (The Rhine and Rhone/Saone are 4.9m plus), but I should think the expensive bits are being craned on and off rather than the mileage.

What time of year are you planning the trip? It can be a long haul up the Rhine and a wild ride down the Rhone if they are in flood (late spring).

 

Thanks

Thanks everyone for your information and suggestions. Unfortunately, it seems our trawler's height will make it impossible to use the canals (the 3.9 m of vertical clearance is with the acrylic wind deflector already taken off). Crag Cay's suggestion, though, of trucking to Chalon sur Saone is worth looking into. We are planning the trip sometime in late summer or early autumn. If we discover this route is feasible, I'll be posting again later to see if we can find someone local to act as our "pilot".

Cheers,

Valeria

 

at € 250 pc navigo is an exellent pc program for that.
i'm sure if you ask the nice guy's bout your boat you get a quik reply or i'll check later