It took 24 years to build the Worcester and Birmingham Canal, the purpose of which was to provide a more direct route between Birmingham and the river Severn than was offered by the three existing canals - the Dudley, the Stourbridge and the Staffordshire and Worcestershire.

By the time the Worcester and Birmingham finally opened in 1815 the Canal Age had less than two decades to go before the dawn of the Railway Age heralded the waterways' decline.

The Birmingham and Gloucester Railway wasn't among the very first to be built, but nonetheless it was open by 1841, after which traffic levels on the canal plummeted.

From then on it never really paid its way though it limped on as a trading artery until 1961, when the last commercial cargo left Worcester for Cadbury's factory at Bournville.

A period of neglect and further decline followed, but then came a massive resurgence of interest in canals for leisure and holidays, and nowadays the Worcester and Birmingham is a vital link in the inland waterways network, carrying more traffic in the summer cruising season than it ever did in its commercial heyday.

It's not the most scenic of British canals - it could hardly hope to compete with the Caledonian, the Monmouthshire and Brecon or even the Staffordshire and Worcestershire - but it is full of character.

Though only 30 miles long, it has five tunnels and 58 locks, including the longest single flight of locks in the country.

The locks might be hard work for boaters but they are evidence of a magnificent feat of engineering and a great source of interest for walkers.

There are 30 locks in the Tardebigge Flight and a further six in neighbouring Stoke Flight - a tightly packed total of 36 in just four miles. Tardebigge Top Lock is one of the deepest narrowbeam locks on the inland waterways system and a good vantage point for far-reaching views to the Malvern Hills. It was built close to Tardebigge Tunnel, which is 530m long, its southern portal forming part of the road bridge which you will cross on this walk before following the towpath past most of the locks of the Tardebigge Flight.

A notable highlight, less than a mile from the tunnel, is Tardebigge Reservoir, originally built to provide clay to line the canal and to supply water to top it up when necessary.

Today, it's the haunt of anglers and keen birdwatchers, but anyone with even the most casual interest in birds will surely be charmed by the great crested grebes which breed there each year.

There are also some interesting buildings to admire along the way, such as Stonehouse Farm on Dusthouse Lane, built of the local red sandstone with the addition of a timber-framed porch. Attractive cottages stand in Tug Row in Tardebigge, and a couple of the former lock-keepers' cottages by the canal remain relatively unspoiled.

Other canal-related buildings survive at Tardebigge New Wharf, while overlooking them all is the elegant church of St Bartholomew, its slender spire a landmark for miles around.

DIRECTIONS1 Walk up the station approach road (New Road) and turn right by the Ladybird Inn on Finstall Road, then right on St Godwald's Road. As soon as you've crossed the railway bridge, cross the road to an unsigned footpath which runs between the railway and a field. Despite the lack of signage this is part of the Monarch's Way. Rejoining Finstall Road, turn right, and soon right again on a footpath. This is still the Monarch's Way, which forms our route all the way to Tardebigge. It is easily followed across fields to Walnut Lane, where you turn right to Stoke Cross.

2 Turn left on Dusthouse Lane. Keep straight on at junctions with a bridleway, a footpath and London Lane. When Dusthouse Lane bends sharp left go straight on along a field-edge path. After crossing a footbridge ignore another footpath on the right and stay on the Monarch's Way, keeping close to the left edge of a field to meet Alcester Road at Tardebigge. Turn right on the footway, cross the canal and join the towpath for about 100m.

3 Take a well-trodden path which climbs a slope to St Bartholomew's Church. Walk through the churchyard then turn right to return to the towpath. Turn left, passing Top Lock House, Tardebigge Top Lock, many more locks and Tardebigge reservoir.

4 Cross the canal at a small cantilevered bridge made of iron and timber (bridge 50/lock 33). Join a waymarked, well-trodden and very easily followed path which runs through four fields to the railway. Cross the railway and proceed to a new housing development. Turn right, then right again on a path running between the River Salwarpe and the railway. The path eventually joins a road (Garrington Road/South Road) leading to Stoke Road at Aston Fields. Turn right, then right again to the station.

FACT FILEStart: Bromsgrove Station, Aston Fields, grid ref SO968693.

Length: 5 miles/9.2km.

Maps: OS Explorer 204, OS Landrangers 139 and 150.

Terrain: Canal towpath, pastoral farmland, quiet lanes; mainly flat with just three easy slopes (one up, two down).

Footpaths: Excellent.

Stiles: Two (easily avoided - one is between Dusthouse Lane and Tardebigge, with London Lane providing an alternative route; the other is on the descent from the church to the towpath).

Parking: Bromsgrove Station Car Park.

Public transport: Excellent Monday-Saturday train service, but currently afternoons only on Sundays; easily accessible by bus, changing at Droitwich to the 140 (Mon-Sat), or at Bromsgrove or Redditch to the 143/343 (daily); www.londonmidland.com or www.worcestershire.gov.uk/bustimetables or Rail Enquiries 08457 484950 or Worcestershire Hub 01905 765765.

Refreshments: Pubs, shops and take-aways at Aston Fields.

Worcester News recommends the use of OS Explorer Maps, your ideal passport to navigating the countryside. This walk is based on OS Explorer 204.