Canal Mile Post - Shardlow 51 & Preston Brook 41 miles

You'll find these mile posts dotted along the Trent and Mersey Canal, with Shardlow's marker at 51 miles and Preston Brook's at 41 miles from the canal's start. They're modest things - stone or metal posts that punctuate the towpath and mark your progress along this 93-mile waterway. Walk the canal and you'll pass them regularly, each one a small waypoint that tells you exactly how far you've come.

They matter most to canal enthusiasts and serious walkers doing longer stretches. If you're pottering along the towpath for an afternoon with family, you'll spot them and move on. If you're tackling the full canal or planning a multi-day boat trip, they become proper navigation tools and little morale boosters. The real draw here isn't the posts themselves but the canal landscape around them - rural Staffordshire opening up as you walk, locks to watch, the occasional narrowboat chugging past.

There's no admission charge since you're walking a public towpath. Allow whatever time suits your walk - these aren't destinations, they're waypoints. Early morning's best if you want peaceful stretches; weekends bring more boats and walkers. Summer's lovely, but autumn gives better light for photography.

Stafford's your nearest town, though the canal runs between far more interesting settlements. Base yourself at Fledgling Farm, just 4.8 miles away, and you've got easy access to miles of towpath in both directions. The canal itself is the real holiday here, not these modest markers.