That immense length—all 67 feet of it—is great when you're inside, but for my husband,Robin, at the helm, it seemed a little daunting at first.

 After a six-point turn, we were plunged into the deep end, so to speak, with the first lock to negotiate. The locks on the Worcester and Birmingham canal are very narrow; there was little more than six inches between boat and lock wall either side. Lining up the boat to slot in smoothly was a real art and this manoeuvre was deftly achieved in the first few locks by bouncing off the sides. But it wasn't long before Robin got the knack and he felt very self-satisfied when he was able to navigate the locks without scraping Brenda.
   However, we had barely been gone an hour from the Black Prince boatyard at Stoke Prior, near Bromsgrove, when the first 'mishap' happened.
   With Robin at the helm, my daughter Elena (14) and her friend Bethany Albutt (15), had just operated two successive locks very ably and we were full of confidence about the relaxing days ahead, when Robin's shouts and curses and the sound of thrashing water shattered our illusions.
   I dashed to the stern wondering what all the commotion was about. We appeared to be stuck in  shallow water and, even worse, the rudder had come out of its mooring. No amount of hoisting, twisting and pulling would shift it. The tranquility of the canal was pierced by expletives as Robin flew into a panic.
   At this point we were in a large area between two short flights of locks. Another boat was coming through the locks in the opposite direction, so we had moved over to the right, as our Boaters' Handbook dictated.
   The brochure had said that "every- one on the waterways is friendly". That illusion, too, was shattered when a fierce-looking woman from the on- coming boat stormed up to us. "I'm not surprised you're stuck," she scoffed,

waving her windlass. "You need to get into deeper water." Well, of course, we knew that. She stomped off, while her husband chugged imperiously past us on his boat with a look that said "my-rudder-is-never-going-to-come- nstuck".
   Thankfully, we did not  meet with the same disdain from our boatyard. A quick phone call and they were with us in minutes, and just as quickly gone. To cap it all, it wasn't even our fault. Our friendly engineer said the water was unusually low and so it was easy to knock the rudder on something just beneath the surface. So there.
   Being a pessimist, I'd had visions of us sinking, as had happened to previous clients of the hire company whose boat had gone under because they'd left the hatch open on their weed catcher. But it wasn't going to be a weed catcher that  threatened our boat. Oh no, it was a careless 14-year-old who forgot to switch the shower pump on when giving her little sister, Sophie (three), a wash.
   The cries of help were superseded by the sight of water appearing around the bathroom door and a shivering and startled Sophie standing calf-deep in water sloshing over the side of the shower tray.
  That was not the only time Elena managed to put her foot in it. The next time she did just that, only it was up to
her knee in the canal. At least she didn't fall right in - quite a feat for a girl infamous for falling into almost every river within 50 miles.
   But all this just added to the excitement. Once settled into the routine and feeling confident with the boat, we started to appreciate the real joy of life on the canal. Cruising along at little more than walking  pace is a great antidote to the breakneck speed of 21 st-century life.
   With only a short break, we had to turn around at Worcester and go backthe way we had come. As we had relaxed into the canal way of life, we seemed to spot more of the nature along the banks, the pretty canal side cottages and villages. Elena and Bethany enjoyed sitting on the roof, legs dangling over the side, as the scenery rolled by, and jumped out en- thusiastically at every lock.
   Everyone agreed that locks are a big part of the fun of a canal boat holiday and our part of the Stourport Ring was full of them. Apparently though, we'd had it fairly easy. If we'd gone north towards Birmingham, or had done a complete loop, we'd have had to face the longest flight of locks in Britain at Tardebigge, 30 locks in one go, climbing 220feet. Now that sounds an interesting idea for our next trip.

WORCESTER CATHEDRAL

The magnificent cathedral is open and staffed every day from 7.30am to 6pm. It features King John's tomb, Prince Arthur's Chantry, the early 12th-century Chapter House and St Wulstan's Crypt.

RED HOUSE GLASS CONE

One of only four left in the UK, the 100ft Cone encloses a furnace around which men made glass for140 years.

CANAL TUNNEL TRIPS

Based at the Black Country Living Museum, Dudley, but separate admission charge. Narrow boats operated by the Dudley Canal Trust take you into spectacular limestone caverns under Castle Hill.

CANAL HOLIDAYS

• Who? Black Prince Holidays, Stoke Prior, near Bromsgrove.

• How much? From £550 per week.

• Information; Call 01527 575115 or visit WWW.black-prince.com.

For other information, visit www.waterscape.com  or www.britishwaterways.co.uk