Broxbourne woods permanent access restrictions

A reasonable chunk in th N.W side of Broxbourne Woods seems to have restricted access now. Was riding there yesterday and a chap said he was from “Bushcraft” and they had leased it from Hatfield house. It seems like a chunk of Singletrack trails will be out of bounds now. They have a number of tents pitched and are building some sort of campsite woodland centre there for a training business. Would be interesting to here if anyone knows what is going on. We have been riding there for many years.

Cheeky trails or some proper OS map marked bridleways in there? If there are, they can’t stop you

Tell him you were there first and if he wants to stop you he’ll have to get a court order.

No idea and not local anymore, but very interested.

Are you talking about Bourne Wood sort of area then? Google Maps tells you the names for the different bits if you’re not sure.

Cheers. There is a footpath and bridle way going across but the majority of trail there is “cheeky” I’m afraid. It’s always been quite a passively managed wood apart from some occasional barbed wire barriers that have cropped up now and then. Hopefully we wot see them putting barbed wire up. Anyway just wondered if anyone knows what their plan is…

Yes it seems to be Bourne Wood area, and the main gravel highway that runs through the middle.

Well if there is access via a bridleway, then they can’t stop you going in the woods…

Me and friend were down there yesterday after a mini break from the area due to how boggy it had all gotten. Pretty annnoyed at how the whole area has turned out due to all these new developments in what was such a great untouched natural area before. We entered the woods from the public byway at the north edge before finding all the private property blah blah signs. Shout out to some trail pixies who have done their best in parts to mark out some trails through areas that have now been mashed up by dozers and other heavy machinery.

Yeah it’s a shame! all these developments just spoil it. They seem to be quick with funds to knock down trees and build car parks and man made level foot paths but have no interest and I guess reason to welcome cyclists. We are silent users of the space . Yesterday I was on Wormley wood next to it. Trails are lovely there and thanks again pixies! Last week there was the manager of the Celtic camp there who had driven into the woods parked at the end of the main bridle way running through. He stopped us to tel us about his private property restricted access. Not good. Should be made common land!

I was down there yesterday with the kids, northern section west of Ermine St (Google says this is Highfield/Bramble’s/Cowheath Woods). Riding along the undulating fire road that runs west from Ermine St, we were chased down and lectured by some oik wearing an orange t-shirt and driving a sort of off-road golf buggy. He was clearly up for an argument so I pointed out that there were no signs highlighting restricted access. This made him back off a bit, and admitted that they keep getting taken down by persons unknown. I said I can’t imagine why, but that this was very much his problem not mine. He went off on one again but I’d switched off by this point, resolving simply to return without the kids and ride everywhere where I f***ing well like! Twunt.

Hi that’s right . That’s the woods we are talking about. It’s just that Broxbourne woods is the collective probably incorrect name we use. I saw that off road buggy. He had it parked next to his car . He seems to be on a mission of clearing out bikers.

I had a walk that passed the tents on Saturday.

I had no idea what was going on until now so thank you for shedding some light on the situation

As above – I’ll ride where I like – after dark is better though

This is the map I was using yesterday, from Herts CC website.

http://www.hertsdirect.org/infobase/docs/pdfstore/walkersmap.pdf

We were riding the “track” which runs roughly west from the big no. 6 and got accosted by bossy boots just before we reached the blue bridleway which runs SE/NW. Whatever work is being done appears to be around where it says “Highfield Wood”, which I think is where he was skulking.

Notwithstanding the disclaimer at the bottom of the map above, if it’s marked on material made available via a local authority portal and expressly intended to help folk explore the area then it’s all fair game IMHO. Ermine St itself is marked only as a “path” with no ROW implications, yet this is a restricted byway on OS.

Herts CC Map

Shame… seems there are very few actual “rights of Way” through there

The Gascoyne-Cecil’s have previous for this sort of thing. They are having the hedge-rows ripped out all over his Hatfield estate and I seem to remember them getting fined a few years ago for illegal tree felling

I’ve not ridden there for a couple of weeks ,I’ve seen the closures.
🙁
Someone should have been prosecuted last year for the state & quality of the “hardcore” they used to rebuild the main bway that runs W/E.

All over Herts, I’ve noticed alot of No cycling signs appear in the last six months.They’ve even gone to great expense installing fences around one of my faves near Tewin.

Storm clouds are brewing, that’s for sure.

The new tenants have no idea how much the ‘closed’ section of woods are actually used and have unrealistic expectations imo.

My advice is carry on as normal and avoid confrontation.

If any dangerous trail obstacles appear, update this thread.

If you see Bushcraft driving their 4x4s at dangerous speeds pursuing cyclists, update the thread.

I suspect additional land will be turned over for car parking, just what the woodland needs!

I agree with the sentiment above regarding the hardcore laid last year, tons and tons of metal & plastic were included and then covered with a thin layer of ‘acceptable’ rubble etc.

Any developments update the thread.

Don’t get arsey. If it’s private land then you have no rights to anything other than the rights of way. Full stop. I am assuming that its not FC land. If illegal riding as been tolerate before you may be allowed to continue once the new tenant’s have settled down. Get stroppy and they may well stick up for their rights.

Hi. I was there yesterday and some of the best trails are now blocked off. The horse lot are putting together something to at least try and make sure that the main track is kept as a right of way: https://www.facebook.com/HertfordHeathPC/posts/382528731932358. I might try and get along to this and add my view. More the merrier??!!

Thanks Banger I will try to get along for that meeting too.

Matts ccm terms of getting “arsey” no body here is suggesting breaking the law. Some of us have been using these woods and trails for access for over 20 or 30 years and some rights of way should have been legally built up. That is why the horse riders are concerned too. If we allow someone to fence it off and do not protest in a proper legal manner the rights will be lost

If anyone has been using the path for a while, then filling out one of these may help…

Hi,
First I have to admit I am not a mountain biker – sorry – but I do run in Broxbourne Woods and have had problems with paths being closed round there. I wanted to share the details of this meeting which is being held to try to open up one of the footpaths that they are blocking. Am having to type details as I can’t add a photo of the poster to this post.

PUBLIC MEETING

Friday June 12th at 7:30pm

Brickendon Parish Hall, Fanshaws Room
Brickendon Green, SG13 8PB

Have you ever walked, cycled or ridden a horse along the track known as the Monks Way in Broxbourne Woods (the cross road at the top of Sticky Hill/Ermine Street to Broxbourne Woods)?

Are you upset that this track has now been closed for public access by Gascoyne Cecil Estates?

Urgent action is needed to claim this route as a public right of way before it is too late. Please come and fill out an evidence form.

Enquiries to: Alison Balfour-Lynn BHS Regional Access & Bridleways Officer
abalfourlynn@sky.com
07778 517486

I believe that she can also email you the form to fill in if you cannot make the meeting.

I hope this helps. Please contact me if you would like a copy of the poster and please feel free to share these details. 🙂

Tracey

PS Apparently complaints have been filed against the bushcraft people for not having planning permission to use the land in this way. Whether this will come to anything I don’t know.

Thanks for posting that up here too. I will attend the meeting and a few other Mountain Bikers have also promised to come along. I will try to report it to the CTC which I’m a member of (cyclists touring club) as they have an access officer too I believe).

Ironically enough, on Sunday i was sat on ‘Henrys bench’, a few metres from ‘ground zero’ repairing a puncture, which is there to commemorate all the work he had done in gaining the rights to paths in the woods

Good luck, hopefully the CTC can provide you with some useful lines of approach.

I’d be there if I wasn’t living 200 miles away now, this is shocking.

Is it the area to the left of these photos?

Yes I think it is actually in some parts both sides of the track – and the track itself. I think there is a footpath that crosses the track that is okay to ride, and the main bridle way, and in that area, not much else 👿

I Haven’t ridden Broxbourne woods since last year and I’m aiming to ride there in the next week or so (live in Ware).

By the sounds of it (correct me if I’m wrong) The nice flowing trail at the back of Highfield wood and the trails going through hedgerow wood and the ‘middle’ are all out of bounds?

😐

The irony of Henry’s bench had escaped me!

Unfortunately the affected area is much greater than you think numbnut. The main fireroad runs from Brickendon right across into Hoddesdon Park Wood. Surrounding areas are now meant to be off limits except for two or three designated footpaths.

The woods have been enjoyed by a diverse spectrum of users for decades and so anyone with an interest must attend the public meeting on the 12th. If you cant make the meeting then fill out the forms mentioned in Samunkins post above.

Went for a ride through here last night and was pretty saddened by what’s happened.
I entered by Monks Green farm and there was a “Bushcraft” banner on the gate and warnings of private land and to stay on the footpaths accompanied by a map which wasn’t clear.
There’s a small portacabin by the first singletrack on the right hand side so I carried on and turned right up the track on the trace below. There are now a number of bridges crossing the ditch on the right hand side with portaloos dotted along too and saw the new camping area.
I got as far as the end where it enters Broxbourne Wood (which was decimated a few years ago)and there were four parked vehicles on the left hand side together with the off-road golf buggy and was confronted by a number of felled trees to block the path.
I saw a number of people in the wood on the right (including orange t shirt man)one of which called out so I stopped.
A chap called Euan came over and said he worked for Bushcraft. He explained that it was private land, they had leased it from Hatfield House and I was no longer allowed in there. We had a pleasant chat and he explained that it included all of the area of Brambles, Cowheath and Hedgerows Woods (areas to the NW of the main track)all the way down to the brook that runs along the bottom of the valley.
He also went on to say that I could carry on riding the area to the SE of the main track (the area within the loop below) as long as I wasn’t seen from the main track….
During this discussion orange t-shirt man came running over (we’ll call him Rattie) and I got the impression he wanted to lend some muscle 🙄
He soon realised there wasn’t going to be any trouble and I told them that I grew up in Cheshunt and Broxbourne, lived in Ware and that I had been using the woods for 20+ years and how disappointing the current situation was.
I asked if it was OK to carry on and exit into Broxbourne Woods (where the sculpture trail is) and they said it was but I might have difficulty as the entrances had been blocked up. I carried on downhill and they weren’t lying so I turned NE (one of my favourite runs in the area) and there were quite a few logs laid across the path which I can only guess came down in the recent winds…
I got to a point where another path crosses and found that the next section was unrideable due to the churning caused by heavy machinery so I turned downhill (SE) and got to the bottom at the stream. There’s a new barbed wire fence that runs all the way along the boundary and for the next while I didn’t recognise the place.
I was eventually spat back out on to the bridleway and headed uphill (NE), out to Monks Green and then onto the singletrack to cut through Highfield Wood towards Goose Green. I found a number of logs laid in the path and at the bottom of the run a number of trees had again been felled to block the path at Ermine Street 🙁

i’ll be at the meeting next friday. love them woods

Used to be local to me but I’ve since moved away.

Has.anyone contacted Hatfield House directly to voice their concerns and changes to the woodland. Will Hatfield House reps be at the meeting (are they even aware of it)?

Used to be local to me but I’ve since moved away.

Has.anyone contacted Hatfield House directly to voice their concerns and changes to the woodland. Will Hatfield House reps be at the meeting (are they even aware of it)?

Taken from a local forum essexhertsmtb

I sent an email to Hatifield House asking a few questions about the current state of the woods, I asked who owns the woods and how long they will be there etc, this was their reply.

Hello Sheldon,

Cowheath, Brambles and Highfield Woods are owned by the Estate. The surrounding woods (Broxbourne Nature Reserve and the land to the south, including Broad Riding Wood are owned by public bodies or charities, including the Wildlife Trust).

The Estate has not dedicated open access in its woods but does maintain the two main public rights of way. We have, over the last five years or so, been improving the woodland through thinning and some harvesting, to encourage and support our strategy of continuous cover foresty (CCF). The aim is to have an un-even-aged forest structure and move away from long cycles of no or little intervention and then large scale clear-felling and replanting. We have invested in new roads and loading bays to improve access for harvesting and machinery.

We have always maintained that the rights of way should be enjoyed and asked people to respect that the woods, despite the neighbouring ones being more of a free-for-all, are not open access throughout. We have had continuous issues with illegal use of the woods by motorbikes; 4×4 vehicles and horses that ride off the bridleway. Our signs get vandalised and gates get torn down.

Bushcraft have a licence from the Estate to hold summer camps in parts of the woodland – away from public rights of way – to teach schoolchildren bushcraft and survival skills. These are held during term time with teachers and their pupils sharing camp together. For all sorts of safety reasons, they do need to make sure people don’t stray from public paths. They have had to do some tree safety work to ensure all risks have been minimised.

I would encourage you to study an OS map of the rights of way – these also show which woods in the area are “open access” and show the footpaths and bridleways. We will be putting up more signs, with maps, to help. Our staff will, as they have been doing for a number of years, continue blocking up motorbike and other accesses that are not part of the rights of way.

We want people to enjoy the rights of way and hope that we, as responsible and long term woodland owners, can go about our woods, managing them for the future and, where appropriate, seeking to have some low-key operations use them (like Bushcraft).

Also, the PDF Evidence forms that people need to fill in if not attending the meeting are available to download directly from http://danemeadcampsite.org.uk/paths-in-the-woods-north-of-danemead/

I will try to attend the meeting too, I’d be interested in hearing more about the Henry who managed to gain public access and how he went about that. Hertfordshire landowners in my experience are fairly ruthless when it comes to squashing dissent and protecting their land.

We have had continuous issues with illegal use of the woods by motorbikes; 4×4 vehicles and horses that ride off the bridleway. Our signs get vandalised and gates get torn down.

At best that statement is misleading…..

I’m going to the meeting. I’ve been riding in those woods regularly (weekly) since 2002 and occasionally since 1984.

There’s plenty of room for all user groups, and no need at all to try to restrict access. The children will (should) all be supervised so there’s no danger to them. I personally prefer getting on with my ride to attacking groups of kids.

I was going to post up details of the maps and meeting but it’s already been done, so it only remains for me to say, please go to the meeting, and tell everyone you know about it.

Ironic that they complain about damage we do (which is denied), yet they clear space for huts and camps and totally blitz the land with their tree-felling machines.

Doubtless, as said above, the Bushcraft operations will encourage more motor traffic along Lord Street and Mangrove Lane (and require car parking) – another blow for the environment.

BTW, I found Bushcraft on Facebook and messaged them asking if they were the same outfit as mentioned on the G-C signs. At the time of writing they have not replied.

See you tomorrow evening.

See you up there. I am going with Ed another local Mtber and have mentioned it to quite a few on my broxbourne ride on Sunday. There is the Farmers Boy pub near the meeting room so should be a pleasant venue to attend. Strikes me as silly that a company called Bushcraft is doing this. I understood bush craft ideals should be appreciation of the outdoors and respect for all users rather than barbed wire and “Gerorf moi land”. C u there.

Yeah, it was the barbed wire I noticed first. Thought it odd, usually only necessary where cattle graze, now I realise it’s to reinforce the “it’s our land, and you peasants must know your place”.

Did someone say they were chased by a man? – been a long time since that happened – I shall go for a ride there this evening. . .

I’ve emailed the Facebook link to Senova Cycles in Hertford and also Highway Cycles.

Bushcraft’s 4×4 patrol have already left deep tyre tracks in sections of one ‘permitted’ route…come Winter they’ll churn up the entire woods.

I had intended to join you at the pub but received a phone call saying one of my dogs was out. There was some doubt about the other one (he was fast asleep on my bed). It was all OK in the end, a friend managed catch her before anything went wrong, but she was distressed and by the time she was calm it was too late to go back to pub.

The reminder that we have right of way on the bridleway was interesting, would put pressure on if the drivers were regularly required to reverse back so we could proceed. I’ll let the residents of Mangrove Road and Lane know too, they won’t be impressed by extra numbers of large vehicles in the lane.

Sadly, I have been away, so could not attend meeting. I was riding through yesterday, and was stopped by a friendly young man wearing a Bushcraft Company t-shirt. He shook my hand then proceeded to explain that I was trespassing. He was polite and well-informed, talked about safe-guarding children (they now have camps in the woods)and that it is not a right of way. He also stated that despite the track being used regularly by the public for many years, Hatfield House have regularly put up Private Property signs etc and kept evidence to prove it. He claimed, for this reason, that the chances of getting it designated a Right Of Way is unlikely. He also stated that considering there have been threats to staff and criminal damage to signs and barriers, this would add to their case. I don’t know about this, but the impression I got was that they are a very corporate bunch and extremely knowledgeable regarding the law.
Its going to take a lot of effort to get rid of them- they and Hatfield House are probably making plenty of money out of this. I’m sure the irony is lost on them that the kids they are supposedly inspiring to love the outdoors, will, once inspired, not be able to visit that outdoors because of people like them !!! Probably too busy counting the cash. I would be interested to know what happened at the meeting and am very keen to get involved in any action- maybe a mass trespass?