I have often written about the Canal de Lalinde --- a marvellous engineering feat that was built in the 19th century to enable the gabares flat bottomed boats to pass the area of the Dordogne River where there are rapids and it is too shallow for safe navigation.
On 29 January 2006 two of the barrage gates at Tuilieres broke and '5 million cubic meters of water, sediment and mud escaped suddenly from behind a 12 meter high wall, a large body of water mass emptying out in a couple of hours, a tidal wave of two meters which comes down on you, a water flow 100 meters wide washing over the river banks, thousands upon thousands of dead fish, public pathways washed away and all fishing and boating on an important river stopped indefinitely....' It was a huge disaster and there was much concern about where to find the funds to repair the barrage -- and whether the barrage should be repaired at all.
And now, just when the barrage restoration is almost complete and the river is once again starting to look like a strong beautiful river -- rather than the pitiful debris-littered stream of the last two years just above the barrage, another disaster strikes!
There is a serious leak in the Canal de Lalinde --- the canal is, below the Couze locks, at an all-time low and the water continue to stream out through a garden and past a house of a very irate citoyenne of St Capraise de Lalinde. Almost her entire garden is already washed away completely and her house is now in danger of going the same way -- into the river.
If one could get past the dozens of officials standing around trying to fathom what to do about the problem, and the television crews who have set up camp there in the hopes of getting the scoop of a house sliding into the Dordogne, you will be kept up to date with the latest news of the pending disaster.
The explanation given to me by one seriously officious-looking official last night was that the leak probably started as result of foxes digging in the area. ...... If that is the opinion of someone who is responsible for saving Madame's house, methinks we should start collecting now for a comfortable tent for her.....
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Chateau Lalinde : The perfect venue for your event
