From station to station: stroll in the land of Brontë

In 1861, civil engineer John McLandsborough made a trip to Haworth, claiming to be a "pilgrim to the sanctuary of Charlotte Brontë". The author had died six years earlier and people were curious to see where she and her sisters were born, raised and so deeply inspired. McLandsborough was surprised to find there was no railway line so, despite being an expert on sewers and drains, he proposed a branch line from Haworth to the Midland Railway at Keighley. Six years later, a line was opened through the beautiful Worth Valley.

The line closed in 1961, just before Beeching cut hundreds of local services , but thanks to the efforts of an army of volunteers, the Keighley & Worth Valley line still operates every weekend and some weekdays in the summer, linking six rural stations in just under five miles.

< p class="dcr-kpil6a">I can't think of a more appropriate route to start this new series of car-free rides. Despite the justified controversy around train prices, there is still no better way to plan a hike: you can see two places, maybe spend the night there; you do not need to retrace your steps to retrieve a vehicle; and there's something satisfying about walking freely from station to station.

This walk from Haworth to Hebden Bridge is an absolute crack. It is 13 miles long but mostly involves gentle inclines and lots of high, flat steps in moorland. Anyone reasonably fit can undertake it - I've met plenty of retired-age hikers along the way - and there's little navigation involved. Much of the path is marked or consolidated to protect the surrounding bogs.

I hadn't been to Haworth in years – decades, in fact. I was expecting gentrification Always too pretty to be gritty and, of course, steep, Hovis-ad-Picturesque Main Street is lined with cafes, delis, bookstores, craft shops, galleries ("Wuthering Arts") and gift shops. I needed a coffee, so I went to the Fairtrade Hunters of Haworth cafe and bakery, where chef-patron Nick made me a perfect brew. I had packed a ham sandwich , but I couldn't resist stuffing one of her towering veggie pies in my backpack. I asked Nick if the city is looking very posh these days. "Curtains may have -be changed, but not the furniture," he said. The latter didn't spoil things – not yet, anyway.

I went up the hill, taking the path behind the church – not n' any, of course, but the one where the Reverend Patrick Brontë preached. It was early Sunday morning and there were already people crowding around the Brontë Parsonage Museum – a sort of secular church. I admired the sturdy front of the house through the charming graveyard - it's an evocative setting - before setting off through Penistone Hill National Park.

Even without the English and Japanese signposts, the path to Top Withens is easy to find. It's four miles each way, and a popular outing for those parking and having lunch at Hawor...