The Royal Hunters' Walks (RHW) are three well-maintained, way-marked walks which start at Sanders Park on the edge of Bromsgrove and head north-west to explore the delightful woods, meadows and paddocks between Bromsgrove and Chaddesley Corbett.

The Hedgelayers' Walk is five miles long, the Chartists' Walk is eight miles and the Foresters' Walk is 12 miles, but the three share a common route from Sanders Park as far as Dodford and back again.

Between Sanders Park and Park Gate Inn the outward and return routes are identical, meaning walkers have to retrace their steps.

The walk described here includes long stretches of the RHW but also uses other paths and returns to Sanders Park by a different route, avoiding the need to cover the same ground twice.

This area was once part of the Royal Forest of Feckenham, hence the name Royal Hunters' Walks. While the names of the Hedgelayers' Walk and Foresters' Walk are self-explanatory, the Chartists' Walk takes its name from a radical, democratic political movement which flourished from 1838 to 1850.

The Chartists were named for their People's Charter, a six-point programme that included universal male suffrage and abolition of payments for members of parliament. Dodford was purpose-built around 1840 as a Chartist settlement, providing formerly landless town dwellers with the chance to try and make a living as market gardeners.

The church of the Holy Trinity and St Mary at Dodford looks unremarkable at first glance, but not only is it regarded as the best church of its date (1907-8) in the county, it also contains woodcarving, plasterwork, metalwork and stained glass said to be the finest examples of work by the Bromsgrove Guild, an arts and crafts movement.

The church is normally locked but may be visited on Tuesdays, when it is open for services from 11am to noon. The church of St John the Baptist at Bromsgrove is much more spectacular, and its tall spire is visible for much of this walk. It's not on the route from Sanders Park but it is close by, and if you travel to Bromsgrove by bus, you will walk past it. There are two famous and much-photographed headstones in the churchyard, to Thomas Scaife and Joseph Rutherford, engine drivers who died in 1840 when the boiler of their locomotive blew up. Their fame derives from the clever and entertaining verse on Thomas Scaife's headstone. Sadly, both headstones are now in rather poor repair but still well worth a look.

More information about the Royal Hunters' Walks may be found in Sanders Park, and an illustrated booklet describing all three routes was published a few years ago and may still be available (price £3.50).

FACTFILEStart: Sanders Park, Kidderminster Road, Bromsgrove, grid ref SO953707.

Length: Seven miles/11.2km.

Maps: OS Explorer 219, OS Landranger 139.

Terrain: Mostly farmland and woodland, with some very moderate slopes.

Footpaths: The Royal Hunters' Walks are excellent but waymarking is poor on some of the other paths, though there are no significant problems.

Stiles: Five.

Parking: Sanders Park.

Buses: 144 daily from Worcester to Bromsgrove bus station - Sanders Park is a very short walk away; the X33 from Kidderminster to Redditch via Bromsgrove passes the park entrance; www.worcestershire.gov. uk/bustimetables or Traveline 0870 608 2608.

Refreshments: Sanders Café at Sanders Park, Dodford Inn at Dodford.

PLEASE NOTE This walk has been carefully checked and the directions are believed to be accurate at the time of publication. No responsibility is accepted by either the author or publisher for errors or omissions, or for any loss, accident or injury, however caused.

DIRECTIONS1 Look for a fingerpost and information panel at the far end of the car park and set off in the direction indicated, soon walking through trees and grassland to the left of Battlefield Brook (not the route wrongly shown on OS maps). Cross a road and join Timberhonger Lane. Soon after passing Tickeridge Farm the RHW takes to the fields on the right, at an easily missed gate. Walk to another lane and turn right.

2 Pass Monsieurs Hall then leave the RHW, taking another path on the left. Walk across the top of a hill, keeping to the left of a house and passing through two gateways to reach a junction. Ignore a waymark by a white gate and turn left instead. On entering a field, bear right uphill to a trig pillar then descend to a hedge and turn right to a small bridle gate near a telegraph pole. Keep left through two fields to Bungay Lake Lane then turn right. Cross Kidderminster Road and proceed along Fockbury Road.

3 Turn left on Priory Road, towards Dodford. Pass the church and Rose Lane then rejoin RHW on the left. Ignore a branching path and keep straight on to enter High Wood. Turn right at three junctions, eventually joining a bridleway that runs past Highwood Cottage. Reaching Woodcote Lane, turn right, then immediately right again on a footpath. Cross a paddock, walk through Nutnells Wood then turn left along the woodland edge to a junction. Turn right to meet a lane.

4 Turn left, then right on Church Road. Keep straight on at three junctions to reach a fourth junction in a valley. Turn left and walk to a lane. Turn right, passing Alfreds Well House and taking the second path on the left, at a flight of steps. Turn right on reaching a track, follow it to a lane and turn right. Turn left on RHW after 120m and keep straight on when you reach a junction, leaving RHW. Turn right by Ploughmans Barn on Fockbury Mill Lane, which crosses the M5.

5 Turn right on Perryfields Road then left on a footpath/cycleway. Keep straight on all junctions until you come to Willow Road. Turn right, following the road to Sanders Park. Alternatively, if you are going to the bus station, ignore Willow Road and keep straight on before bearing right to pass through the churchyard.