Travelling on the canals with drifters

Jo Kessel, her husband and three teenage children set off for their first canal boat holiday from our Worcester base in July.

Travelling aboard the 69ft ‘Aquatic Warbler’ narrowboat for up to eight people, Jo and her family took a four night midweek break and completed the Droitwich Ring, also known as the Mid-Worcestershire Ring.

This journey took them on a 21-mile circular route – the only canal boat ring that can be completed comfortably on a short break. They passed through 33 locks in around 16 hours. They travelled along sections of the Worcester & Birmingham Canal, the Droitwich Canals and the River Severn.

Jo says, ‘A holiday on a narrowboat ticks so many boxes: it’s different, it’s active, it’s adventurous and it’s more about the journey than the destination.’

She describes the facilities on board the boat, their top stops (including Hanbury Hall and the village of Salwarpe) and how they worked as a team to navigate their route: ‘While the boat’s captain has to stay put, the crews’ jobs are unexpectedly physical. We winded paddles on lock gates back and forth; we hammered pegs into the ground; we pulled and tethered ropes; we pushed away swing bridges. And in between we walked the towpath, foraging for fruit. Blackberries, raspberries and greengages were ripe for the picking.’

Summing up, Jo says the holiday was ‘a perfect blend of physical activity and relaxation’, saying they slipped into a ‘new rhythm’ they ‘dubbed the slow life’.

To read the full review, go to https://www.loveexploring.com/news/98895/family-canal-boat-holiday-uk

To see Jo’s tour of their narrowboat, visit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7mmx69LQSv0