The best way to see any part of the world is by boat. Conor Power and his family go on a week-long cruise of the River Charente – a place where history and brandy are prominent features
Day 1:

Approaching St Simeux
Our first overnight was around the meandering Charente to a place called Saint Simeux. It must be very hard to find a place that no-one seems to have written anything about yet which is still enchanting and beautiful. Even American know-it-all website Tripadvisor merely mentions the fact that it has a restaurant but nothing else.
The restaurant in question is a pub/restaurant by the river called Les Garbariers and we found a mooring right in front of it. As the rain pelted down all evening, we sat in the pub run by a British immigrant named Simon while listening to another expatriate Brit from Manchester in his 60s deliver a stunning blues session. He was followed by a local garage band that attacked every tune they could with exemplary fearlessness but by that stage we were all turning in for bed, nodding off to dodgy covers of Téléphone and Queen.
I got talking to a local guy who told me that his father – Thierry Bonhomme – had a Pineau and wine production company. I promised I’d call in the next day.
Day 2:
Before setting off on the next leg of the cruise, we took the bikes and cycled up to the top of the village itself. It was a dull morning with the rain coming in fits and starts. We had a look inside the part-Gothic part-19th-century church whose bell had been felled by a lightening bolt in 1884. The views from beside the church were panoramic of the vine-dominated countryside.

The lock-keepers: it makes sense to bring your children – if nothing else, they’re good at operating the locks
The sun came out in strength as we went through the lock at the entrance to Jarnac, painting a romantic first impression. Martell’s name seems to be the loudest one of a variety of brandy companies here. It’s a smart-looking town and I was surprised to read in my guide book that it was the birthplace (and burial place) of the late President François Mitterand.
Day 3:
We woke up to an unseasonably cold morning. The local tourist office were very helpful with brochures and information. Our three boys were delighted to find free WiFi there too.

Where’s the dinner? Sitting at the table in Jarnac
“They’re all gone from here,” they said.
“So, I suppose there are no more Socialists left in Jarnac now?” They only laughed in reply.
Mitterand’s final resting place was one of the more discreet tombs in the cemetery where many families had spent big to create super-sized elaborate sepulchres around their remains.
We moved on to Cognac and found a mooring in the towns slightly shabby marina and went for a cycle around the town itself. In the evening, it has a charming atmosphere – a town of centuries of trade and history whose sandstone walls and fortifications speak of commerce and defence. Then it was back to the boat for a family game of cards before bed.
Day 4:

The boat “parked up” at the marina in Cognac
I had been led to believe that there was something of the faced glory about the town but it’s a very well-kept neat place. After visiting its fine 12th-century cathedral, we had a look around the lively market in the centre of town and bought some nice supplies for lunch.
We didn’t have time to visit any of the brandy houses there, but I did stop outside the gates of the famous Hennessy factory – the world’s largest supplier of Cognac. It was founded over 250 years ago. In common with almost all of the big Brandy companies along the Charente, it was founded by a foreigner who, in this case, was a Cork man by the name of Richard Hennessy.
In the afternoon, we set off again. We stopped to explore a tiny village en route before continuing our journey and we pulled into the city of Saintes shortly before sunset.

Sunset in Saintes – our boat is moored on the bottom right
Day 5:
The sunshine was of the proper French summer variety when we awoke next day. It made a nice difference to be in a city environment after being through so many small towns.
We were quickly out on our bikes to have a look around this very pretty city. You can already feel that it’s a place of formerly huge importance. The large Gallo-Roman arch beside a pile of Roman ruins right by the quayside and the Tourist Office is a dead give-away.
The open-air/covered market in the shadow of the cathedral proved an irresistible draw and we bought some nice bread, a cheese stick and lardons to go with whatever wonderful surprises my wife had in mind for dinner.

Wonderfully Ruinous – the Gallo-Roman Amphitheatre in Saintes
We finally left Saintes in the afternoon. It was a hard place to leave and we had to top up on electricity too. The journey was very warm and sunny and we were all up on top (you have the choice to navigate from inside the cabin or up on top in the open air), playing “I spy” as we motored through the beautiful landscape.
We stopped at a tiny village with a campsite by the river called Chaniers. Here, we had a swim in the pleasantly cool waters, jumping off the deck and swimming against the mild current.

Tranquillity by the Charente, even thought the water’s a bit of a stretch
When we got there, however, there was a nice picnic spot and a toilet block but the tap was of the push-down type that our hose couldn’t attach to. Furthermore, it was too far from the river bank for our hose to even reach it. It wasn’t a major inconvenience in any case and we managed by making trips with pots over to the tap and back. We’d wait until tomorrow to have a proper shower.
Day 6:
We started off at the very first light, savouring the magical misty light of the early morning. As the kids slept, we felt like we were discovering this stretch of the river all over again, with the abundance of wildlife – from birds to choruses of croaking toads, otters to jumping fish and strange black-and-white storks in the fields.

Morning glory reflected
We overnighted in Jarnac once again, having found another perfect spot beside a weeping willow, where we enjoyed a superb meal of produce bought at Jarnac’s market: mussels, chips, merquez and lots of other bits an pieces, all washed down with some great wine.
I had borrowed a frying pan from French neighbours on a larger boat down the quay. When I returned it after dinner all washed and clean, they invited me on board for an after-dinner drink. I had thought they were a bit stand-offish having come across them earlier but, as is often with French people, the initial impression is always the coldest and we had a great laugh, talking about boating, life, wine, teenage children, Ireland and France.
In weakness, I cycled into town to look for some “holiday cigarettes”. I went into a little bar where the tipsy barmaid (who looked like the owner too) was chatting with four hardy locals and said that “par hasard”, she happened to have a packet of Winston. The boys at the counter found this extremely funny, saying how it would be years again before she’d have any more. One guy said “I’d better get some too in that case!”
Day 7:
The next morning, the sun was blazing and the Friday Jarnac market was buzzing. We said hello to our neighbours from the night before, got bread, some local honey and two slices of the most fantastic home-made pate I’ve ever had – made by a local genius of an artisan butcher called Alain Beau.
We made more friends on our next stop-off point at St Simon, where we had a swim. A very nice Breton guy – Noël – from Quimperlé was on holiday with his son and daughter.

Our boat (left), moored in front of Les Garbariers
We arrived in brilliant evening sunshine at Les Garbariers. As it was our last night, we were eating out. The music started up as we tucked into our pizzas and got talking to a couple from Drogheda. They too had discovered the magical St Simeux by accident and had fallen in love with the place so much that they were now living here and he had even got involved with the local council.
Day 8:

Captain and first mate…
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We travelled with Nicols Boat Hire. For further information, prices and booking, see www.boat-renting-nicols.co.uk