Thanks for the responses, but it wasn't advice about France I wanted! Our two main passions are boating and France - it's just that we've never before had a chance to combine the two. I deliberately left my original post vague because I enjoy the kind of creative and varied responses that come up here, but these are the kind of things I had in mind:
Commercial traffic on the Freycinet canals has declined very much in recent years. Is there any left at all on the Canal Lateral a la Loire? (I know there isn't on the Nivernais). Given that these canals are generally deeper and wider than most of the canals used for holiday boating in Britain, do boats tend to slow down for moored boats? Is it generally possible to moor away from the designated moorings in towns and villages - say in the middle of nowhere - as here? How crowded (or not) is it these days? Queues at locks? Any other boating advice, suggestions etc? And yes, I too endorse all the comments about enjoying France! Keir [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
