Je comprends, mais bravo quand même !

Thanks for taking the time Wendy.
I don't even know why I used "shore" and not "bank" for the river. I think I found the meaning of the last part ( the idea of the water making way for the body, without saying that he drowned) so difficult to convey that I did not pay enough attention to the rest.

Marina: I hope I don't overwhelm you with my explanations, but your English is so good, I feel you deserve to know why I would suggest alternative translations. My suggestion would be:

To keep it in sight longer he moved closer to the water's edge; he left the towpath to walk on the meadow that was visible beneath the water, but at the first step the meadow vanished and the river revealed itself once more right down to the bottom.

I would use 'vanish' rather than 'disappear' because 'vanish' captures the suddenness with which the reflection of the meadow broke the instant his foot touched the water.
Disappeared and vanished both mean to stop being visible or present, but vanished usually implies a faster, more sudden, or mysterious disappearance. Vanished highlights the illusion. A reflection is an optical illusion.

Also, the word shore - in this context doesn't quite gel for me. he drew closer to the shore - typically implies that he is moving to the shore from the river - it is the typical description for when one is in the water, either in a boat or swimming and moving towards the land (shore).
Otherwise to imply that you are coming to the shore of a river/lake/ or the sea, from the landward side, you would expect something like - he went down to the shore.

The other difficulty I have here, is the getting from the towpath to walking on the 'meadow' which is in the water. If you are drawing closer to the shore - it means you haven't reached it yet, and yet in the next moment he is walking on the meadow in the water.
Whereas if you use 'water's edge', you have the immediate connection to then walking in the water. It means you have crossed the shore to the water.

Drew and move also have nuances of meaning - moved closer - is more direct and literal. It describes a conscious, physical action of changing position to reduce space, which is what he is doing here. He deliberately goes to the water to keep the barge in sight.
Drew closer - is a more literary term, giving a slower, more abstract feel. It indicates a movement towards but not of reaching one's destination.

Hope that helps ! 🫣

the river divided asunder, to the bottom. ?
When in the Bible, the Sea was Divided Asunder,... it is just the opposite, the waters don't swallow the Hebrews.