If spring ever arrives there will be nothing nicer than a Sunday afternoon stroll.

Picturesque old villages, rural landscapes and peaceful river banks are often just around the corner from your home.

Veteran rambler Margaret Sharp, 75, lists 25 trips through some of suburbiaÍs hidden jewels in her newly published book, Travelcard Walks in West London.

Most routes are between three and five miles long and fortuitously many have several pubs, cafes or tea houses along the way. All the starting points can be reached by Tube, rail or bus.

Walks in Harrow and Brent include Barn Hill, Fryent Country Park and Welsh Harp; Pinner and Headstone Manor; and Stanmore Circular via Bentley Priory and Harrow Weald. Hillingdon routes include Ruislip Woods and Northolt; Stockley Park; the Yeading Brook Meadows and Ickenham to Uxbridge.

Those fancying a stroll in Ealing can walk the River Brent from Hanwell to Perivale and Brentford to Hanwell by canal and Boston Manor Park.

Each walk is clearly described so people will not get lost. So you have no excuse to waste those lazy summer days in front of the television, but a perfect reason to put off the DIY or avoid visiting the in-laws.

Travelcard Walks in West London is published by Mainstream Publishing at £7.99.