■ Distance: 5½ miles/8.8km ■ Time: 3 hours ■ Grade: Easy

■ Distance: 5¾ miles/9.2km ■ Time: 4 ...

Discover the joy of ‘messing about on boats’ with some of the UK’s prettiest canal journeys

Gongoozle your way along one of Scotland’s finest weekend walks, with a single inch of ascent in 31 miles on the towpath of the Union Canal.

■ Distance: 7¼ miles/11.5km ■ Time: 4 hours ■ Grade: Moderate

To escape the crowds in high summer head for a little known corner of the county near Ripon