EDB 20 Picardie

Oise Canal latéral à lOise Canal de Saint-Quentin Escaut canalisé Escaut grand gabarit Aisne Canal latéral à lAisne Canal de lOise à lAisne Canal du Nord Canal de la Sensée Somme.

The Picardy landscape is criss-crossed by countless navigable waterways and represents one of the densest waterway networks in all of France.

As the link between the north and Paris there is still a lot of commercial traffic on these canals today but there are also many leisure boaters between Paris and Belgium.

If you are coming from the Paris area start your trip on the Oise. It flows down the valley into the Seine and is one of its most important tributaries. On the Oise too you will encounter many cranes but there are many harbours and moorings where pleasure boaters are always welcome.

At the end of the Oise you have to choose between two canals for the onward journey: The old Canal Saint-Quentin and the Canal du Nord.
The Canal Saint-Quentin with its many tunnels is definitely the more exciting of the two but on the Canal du Nord which is a compromise between the Freycinet Canals and the large Belgian canals you will make faster progress.
Another route runs along the Sambre and the Meuse but it is currently closed to navigation.

The Somme is undoubtedly Picardys most interesting waterway for tourists. There is almost no commercial traffic on this river which is a good alternative to the Seine for leisure boaters from England. The towns of Saint-Valéry Abbeville and Amiens provide exciting stages on this route. If you sail to these towns you will also escape the strong influence of the tides.

The Aisne - which leads east and into the valleys of the Marne and Meuse - and its canals are also among the waterways of Picardy. Navigating this river is a good way to avoid Paris and the numerous excursion boats.
The Aisne is rather unknown to recreational boaters and is also little used by barges.

Scale 1:50000/1:25000 2015. Trilingual "Guide fluvial" (frz./engl./dt.) by Editions du Breil. Colour map drawings throughout the text contains nautical and tourist information.