They get less fanfare and footfall than the UK’s famous long-distance paths, but trails such as this – which starts in Chester and saunters through the local countryside – are just as rewarding

At 8.45am, I stroll down the steps of The Queen at Chester hotel and into the midweek flow. The roads are full of delivery vans, the station is lined with taxis and the pavements are busy with commuters. I move among them lightly, a roamer bound for distant lands. Well, distant-ish: I’m a coffee to the good, it’s a warm day, and I’m about 20 strides into a 13-mile hiking trail. A pigeon coo-coos from a pub roof. And so the Baker Way begins.

In the UK, you’re rarely far from a good walk. According to The Ramblers, there are more than 140,000 miles of footpaths, byways and bridleways in England and Wales alone. Some of these are well-used routes through classic beauty spots, but most go nowhere near a mountain ridge, a clifftop or even a national park. This makes them no less valuable.