The Canal du Midi is the central link of the Canal des deux mers. Its origin is in the port of l'Embouchure in Toulouse, a sort of river marshalling yard that also opens onto the Brienne and Garonne canals. The canal then crosses the pink city through the Minimes district, then the very urban Matabiau station.
Toulouse pink city
It is only after the Saint Sauveur harbor, in the shaded reach of the Pont des Demoiselles, that we find a green corner in the middle of the city. The area around the entrance to the VNF dry docks is a beautiful place to moor and leave the boat to stroll through the lively streets of the Pink City. On the water, the houseboats form real colorful and cosmopolitan villages that stretch over several kilometers.
A privileged point of view
The Herbettes canal-bridge offers the jubilant pleasure of passing by boat above the traffic jams of the ring road. It marks the exit of the city. Navigating in this way in an urban environment is not at all unpleasant, as you feel like a privileged spectator and detached from the surrounding agitation. The South Port is more particularly dedicated to houseboats but offers berths to passing boats.
By bike or by boat
The towpath is crossed by an impressive number of hikers! Walkers, pilgrims on their way to Compostela, but especially a lot of cyclists with panniers who follow the green way! This evolution fluvestre is amazing to experience from the inside: while boaters used to be spectators of the aquatic environment, the users of the banks now show a benevolent curiosity towards the boats, which are now perceived as part of the scenery.
Lock keepers and automatons
The Castanet lock is almost 5 meters high. Its automatic system requires that a crew member be disembarked to start the maneuver. Only the locks with multiple chambers are guarded by a lock keeper and we will probably miss the fleeting encounters with these men and women of the canal. From now on, only the light of the lock marks the resumption of navigation after the siesta.euros
Historical works
The Canal du Midi is three and a half centuries old and Pierre-Paul Riquet, its designer, has left numerous works of art along its route: aqueducts, water spouts, arched bridges, all testimonies of the past that you can't fail to admire as you pass. The locks have rounded sides to better resist the pressure of the water. The one of Negra is bordered by a small chapel dedicated to the bargemen.
Road or canal
Gardouch has a pleasant port from which it is recommended to make a stopover as far as Villefranche-de-Lauragais. On the map, the route of the A61 freeway flirts closely with that of the canal, but this is rarely a problem as long as one chooses one's places of call with full knowledge of the facts. In Port-Lauragais, the canal encircles an island with a motorway restaurant. Against all odds, the result is so pleasant that two charter companies have established their base there.
At the threshold of Naurouze
The next lock, that of the Ocean, opens onto the divide and conquer, the highest point of the canal. It was here, at the Naurouze threshold, that Riquet imagined collecting the waters of the Montagne Noire to feed his work. From there, the locks go down to the Mediterranean. The site of Naurouze is worth a visit with its large octagonal basin planted with an arboretum that allowed the selection of the best species to reinforce the banks. It is a pleasure to walk along the superb avenue of plane trees to see the mill, the small canal and the obelisk. The place is symbolic and touching because of the hopes and visionary projects it conveys.
The land of cassoles
Just downstream from the Mediterranean lock, the Not pottery workshop adjoins the towpath. The door is always open and the visitor can admire the quiet dexterity of these men who work while conversing with infinite patience and kindness. Under their fingers, the earth rises, refines and takes shape. Thus are born the cassettes these flared cassoulet dishes are so common in the region that they are recycled for all domestic uses, from the dog's bowl to the car's oil change!
The following locks are often with multiple locks, which means that when the doors open, the boat enters another basin which is emptied in turn. The canal cascades down to Castelnaudary and its Grand Bassin, a 7-hectare stretch of water that offers an open view and a southern flavor.
Local tips and tricks:
Near the Pont des Demoiselles in Toulouse, the Montplaisir garden is open every Saturday morning. It is next to the Georges Labit Museum.
The canker disease is decimating the plane trees of the canal and large portions are being cut down and replanted.
The site of Naurouze deserves to be studied for its history and for the history of the channel that brings water from the basin of Saint-Féréol.
The village of Montferrand is dominated by an aeronautical lighthouse which marked the night route of the planes at the time of Mermoz and Saint Exupéry.
The Not pottery is a magical place to discover.
In Castelnaudary, the mill of Cugarel faces the winds of the Black Mountain. It can be visited during the summer season.
The cassoulet of the Escudier house is the most famous and the most traditional of all!
The Castelnaudary harbour master regularly organizes evenings in the courtyard of the harbour house. An organic market gardener comes to offer her vegetables, fruits, herbs and other edible flowers.
The Canal du Midi in brief:
- Length 65 km from Toulouse to Castelnaudary
- 26 basins in 20 locks
- Speed : 8 km/h
- Vignette and navigation tax : yes
- Managing institution: VNF
- Template : 30 x 5,60 m
- Minimum air draft : 3,30 m
- Minimum draft : 1,40 m
- Renters : Le Boat, Locaboat, Nicols, Navicanal
- Navigation guide : Editions du Breil N°07 Canal du Midi
