Champagne Country



Typical village where we first enter Champagne

We hadn't planned on travelling along the Marne, but are now very glad that we have come this way.   Although the days tend to start off quite overcast, it has always cleared up at some point, and we have had beautiful views of grape country in the sunshine. 

At first, the countryside consisted of low hills covered in vines, intersected by a strip of village at the middle.  As we floated further along, the hillsides became taller and steeper, usually with the towns situated at the bottom, along the canal. 


The vineyards rise above the village

It is currently picking season, and the hillsides are busy with activity.  When we stopped in the town of Cumiers, we climbed the hillside to get a better look at the grape vines. 



Village atop a hill in Champagne

One of the things we noticed on the hillside was the plastic covering the seats in the vans used to cart plastic cases of grapes down to the village from the hillside.  Even the seats on the bus were covered.  I guess grape picking season is a fairly messy time!  According to our nautical chart, the town of Cumiers is home to 40 different champagne producers.  We haven't stumbled across an opportunity for a tour yet, but hopefully we will before we leave the region.

The Canadian flag on the bow of our boat alerted a passer by as to our nationality and he stopped for a chat, indicating that he was a British Columbian here to pick grapes.  For him, the 150 dollars a day in exchange for hard work, lots of scratches, and impressive grape stains is an okay wage but his Spanish girlfriend said that it was a very good wage compared to what she would make at home.  



Grapes on the vine at Cumiers 



Grape picking art along the canal at Cumiers





View down the hill at Cumiers