Built between 1784 and 1841, the Nivernais Canal was originally intended to be only a flume of driftwood that artificially linked the slopes of the Loire and Seine between La Collancelle and La Chaise in the Nièvre. The project involved adding the use of the Bazois forests to those of the Morvan, which could no longer supply the city of Paris with wood. In 1786 it was decided to turn it into a real canal of navigation from Saint-Léger-des-Vignes, in the Nièvre, to Auxerre, in the Yonne, 174 kilometres, which was completed in 1841. Endowed with numerous works of art, including the trenches of the Collancelle which were bitterly dug by 1200 workers including convicts, the waterway was quickly obsolete. Its bridges were too low and its locks were 30 metres long, making it impossible for long boats to pass. Competing with the railway, which appeared in the first part of the nineteenth century, the waterway collapsed around 1880 and died in 1960. The cost of its construction was staggering. In 1962, Pierre Zivy, promoter of recreational boating on canals, assisted by Ted Johnson, took this abandoned jungle. Seduced, he had the central concession taken over by the Conseil Général de la Nièvre, then chaired by François Mitterrand, in 1972. Emerging from oblivion, the canal quickly became the jewel of Nivernais river tourism. Considered one of the most beautiful in Europe, this book attracts international tourists every year. Its bicycle route is also a delight for nature lovers. Gérard Mazière, former lock operator on the canal, and Ted Johnson, pioneer of boat rental on this waterway, share their memories.