TUI USER MANUAL updated 11 August 22

 This Manual hopefully is comprehensive and clear, but if you have any suggestions to improve it, please let us know.

In places it may make reference to other literature on board, such as the “Waterways Guides” or the mauve coloured Folder-both may be found under the forward end of the bench sofa. The Canal Guides are mines of information regarding the locks (ecluses), lock opening times, places to visit, places to tie up, inland ports (port du plaisance), market days, etc.

The “Ships Papers” folder contains inventories of spares and tools user manuals and specifications/receipts for all the various equipment and appliances, as well as other useful information.

We apologise in advance if we are stating the obvious in the text below—our comments and advice are often borne out of hard-won experience!!

General:

TUI is 11.35 metres long, 3.85 metres wide and draws 85 cm. She displaces 7.5 tonnes. She is ‘powered’ by a 50 horsepower BMC diesel motor.

In full racing trim she tops out at about 10 kph, but you are only allowed to do 8 kph – which she does at about 1200 revs.

There is no point in exceeding the speed limit-it just stresses the motor, uses more fuel and the wake erodes the canal banks. The motor is “governed” to this speed. It can be de-governed easily enough and will need to be for when trips are taken in other areas such as up the Rhone River.

The motor uses about 1.8 litres per hour.

She was built in the UK in 1986 and is robustly constructed of fiberglass. Being of a good age and an ex hire boat, she has her share of dings and scrapes (like wrinkles on a face—signs of ‘Experience’).

Because she is French registered, it is customary to fly the French flag normally on the bow, so we do this along with the NZ flag or silver fern on the bow below it, because then other Kiwis can recognize a fellow boater. Whereas if the NZ flag is flown on the stern, by the time they realise we are kiwis, it is too late. We do not fly anything with a Union Jack on it in case they mistake us for Brits-who some of them don’t like. Rugby is a popular topic in the south of France.

We fly the French flag on the stern and the NZ silver fern flag on the bow.

There are life jackets under the sofa. Non-swimmers should use them when going through locks and all should use them if told to do so by the lock keeper. It is a good idea to try them on at the beginning of your trip and have them reasonably accessible when underway.

Canal Water:

Not safe for drinking or swimming in.

In France the canal boats have no black or grey water tanks (there is nowhere to empty them in any case) so consequently it all goes over the side.

With typical Gallic logic they tell us that the constant propeller action of the canal boats aerates the water and breaks down the by-products of eating and drinking.

So we are actually part of the solution and if we don’t eat or drink then we are not part of the problem. The canals don’t smell much and fish and coypu (like otters) live in them.

Oh, by the way, steer well clear of fishermen to avoid snagging their lines.  It is a good idea to slow down as you pass a fisherman to show courtesy. Also go past moored vessels slowly (3-4 kph) for the same reason.

Mechanical —