Julia starts this walk in Birmingham, which surprisingly boasts more canals than Venice. But her mission isn't to seek out gondolas or ice cream – it's to discover how the city, through its canal network, became the epicentre of the Industrial Revolution. It's also the start of Julia's two-day walk along the historic and picturesque Worcester & Birmingham Canal, which cuts a 30-mile path through to the River Severn. The highlight of the canal is a dramatic two-mile flight of 30 locks which lower the canal by 220 feet. Negotiating this flight of locks is considered to be a rite of passage by boaters, and it's definitely one for the tick list for walkers.

• Julia Bradbury