Harmergreen Wood, Digswell/Welwyn; Blocked trails; private land issues

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Harmergreen Wood, Digswell/Welwyn; Blocked trails; private land issues

22 posts & 12 voices | Started 3 months ago by rocky mountain | Latest reply from rocky mountain

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rocky mountain - Member

Hi,
went through the woods today and a favorite trails had been blocked and obstructed with branches, logs etc. The land is 'private' and owned by the Scouts. However it is full of paths, bridleways etc, some marked with yellow signs, others au naturel.

What is the current legislation on right to roam, access?

Also is it 'illegal to obstruct established paths? We have not had fishing wire or wires strung up yet; however that may well be next.

It seems that landowners are getting more active in restricting access.

Posted 3 months ago #
TandemJeremy - Member

YOu only have the right to ride on bridleways. If they are blocked than you are legitimately allowed to unblock them and / or to complain to the councils rights of way officer.

the council should have a map showing where the rights of way are.

Paths that are not rights of way - you have no rights

Dunno about right to roam in England but it only applies to certain land - unfenced moorland IIRC

Posted 3 months ago #
chakaping - Member

How seriously blocked?

Horse riders have been putting branches across tracks as jumps round Broxbourne way.

Posted 3 months ago #
rocky mountain - Member

everything from sets of logs to branches, all deliberate and set so that a key points you could not jump it etc.

its ironic that its the scouts stopping people from enjoying and using the woods....
harmergreen woods are ancient and have well established routes through it, not like mardley heath which was an old dump. ( the roller coaster is always good)

Posted 3 months ago #
pete68 - Member

You have the right to use Bridleways,Byways and Restricted Byways.Look on a OS map to check easily whats there.If its one of these blocked then contact the local Rights of way Officer.If the paths aren't rights of way and the land owner doesn't want you there then theres nothing you can do as you shouldn't be there to start with.The fact that theres lots of paths means nothing.

Posted 3 months ago #
rocky mountain - Member

cheers, can you get OS map on line? what was the one that shows everything in micro detail, rather than the explorer ones? i have one somewhere buts its buried.

Posted 3 months ago #
timmys - Member

cheers, can you get OS map on line? what was the one that shows everything in micro detail, rather than the explorer ones? i have one somewhere buts its buried.

http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=525357&Y=217027&A=Y&Z=115

Looks as though the only bridleway runs around the edge of the wood. If it is indeed private land, and the landowner has not given permission, then any trails in the wood have as much right to be there as one built through your kitchen.

Posted 3 months ago #
rocky mountain - Member

hi, cheers, there are paths through and i think bridleways,

however our trail runs to the east side of the wood parallel to a bridleway. its a good bit to shoot down with twists and turns and all the good stuff...... aw well we will just have to clear it, ride back up and down again.. was great in the snow last year. anyone know it?

s

Posted 3 months ago #
whippersnapper - Member

If i the one I think you mean it's my favourite bit of singletrack in the area. It has to be included in every ride, if not twice. Last time I rode it in the snow I ended up with a bruise on my bicep that lasted about a year - hit a little sawn off branch quite hard.

EDIT - thinking about it, that is not in the bit owned by the scouts

Posted 3 months ago #
Karinofnine - Member

I ride through there, there's a bridleway. But also you can get into a small wood which has trails. I have ridden a trail in there, great fun. Last time I was there branches and logs had been put across the trail. There are no rights of way marked on my landranger for the bit I think you are talking about. I just assumed it was walkers being proprietorial, my thinking being that if the landowner was objecting it could have simply repaired the gap in the fence at the corner where you branch off the right of way into the wood. It has spoilt a really nice little track, shame.

Posted 3 months ago #
rocky mountain - Member

Its a well established route, not sure if horses use it as well. Sometimes we ride back up it as its that good.

There are lots of paths etc and no signs as is the case on the Woodhall estate that covers most of Bramfield. This is where shooting and forestry work takes place. Harmergreen is a woodland and is used by many people apart from the Scouts.

My concern is that someone will get arsey and string wire and such like up.

Its getting a bit pitch forkery round here;to the south of Harmergreen, there have been cattle attacked by dogs on purpose and in Digswell a shetland pony was savaged by a dog in the middle of the night.He was 33 years old and had to be put down.

Posted 3 months ago #
jedi - Member

its had logs and stuff down on it for the past coupe of weeks

Posted 3 months ago #
Karinofnine - Member

It might be well established, but that doesn't make it a right of way. Anyway, I think we must be talking about a different path, because the one I rode was obvious but still very 'private footpath-ish'.

Has your last paragraph got anything to do with mountainbikers? Are you suggesting that we have anything to do with attacking livestock? (Which is awful, btw, poor pony.)

Heh, we all ride the same trails, post on the same forum, but don't meet IRL. How odd.

Posted 3 months ago #
rocky mountain - Member

hi,
was making a comment on how trails are getting blocked by 'land owners' and on the other hand, 'human beings' are attacking animals; we are caught in the middle and getting hassle for just wanting to ride.

i rember in the old days there were studies on how trails and land is affected by users; horses, motorbikes, 4x4 dig into the land, bikes go over it leaving very little disturbance, ramblers just froth at the mouth when anything without two legs approaches them.

Posted 3 months ago #
pedalheads - Member

I've cleared this trail twice in the last month - it seems some of these people wont be happy until they seriously hurt a mountain biker. The trail runs parallel to the bridlway, so the landowner has every right to block it, unfortunately. Bramfield Woods is going the same way - there is a similar trail running parallel to the bridleway that's been blocked. I don't think its horse riders who are the culprits, usually walkers (logs etc across trails) or the Landowners (completely blocking the trails)

Posted 3 months ago #
senor j - Member

Bramfield Woods is going the same way

I went through Bramfield on Saturday ,the few bits of singletrack had been obstructed by felled trees. le bummer.

re the O.P.'s point - i prefer the Bway ,last time I did the trail that runs parallel to it it was all sH£te up.

Posted 3 months ago #
herts46220 - Member

I had this issue with Harmergreen Wood last year, and I enquired with Woolmer Green Parish Council, Ordnance Survey and Hertfordshire Police - I was informed the Scout side of the wood was 'Private Property' and there was no rights of way through since the railway was electrified in 1967 (i think thats when it was). Unfortunately the Scouts are within their rights to block these footpaths, but i notice the fences that I guess they are putting up keep being pulled down. The only public rights of way are via the bridleways and footpaths than run around the perimeter of the wood. I might still have the Parish Council map is anyone wants a copy emailed i'll try and dig it out.

Posted 2 months ago #
DrRSwank - Member

Thread hijack.

Anyone fancy showing a slow fat biker around some local trails one day?

I've ridden out and about from south of Stevenage and I've found little that excites......

I have (I think) found the trail through the scout camp but not much else.

Posted 2 months ago #
jedi - Member

if my lights arrive today i'll ride with my daughter tonight

Posted 2 months ago #
jedi - Member

i'm off that way now. start in the pub at tewin

Posted 2 months ago #
whippersnapper - Member

Well, my favourite bit of single track in the area as mentioned up there ^ has almost been ruined, not by the types with logs etc but by the council i'm assuming...some lovely gravel paths now, in the woods, wtf?

Posted 2 months ago #
rocky mountain - Member

hi all,
glad i dropped by again here.
there are footpaths through the woods, which means it is open to the public...?

maybe we should clear the trails as often as we can in harmergreen, i rode up the bridleway, simply as i was knackered. however will be riding on tuesday night.

bramfield has a lot of work going on, as is sherrardswood.lots of felling and clearing. seems like branches are being strewn across the paths; its very horsey round there, so they may be causing more damage than us.

if everyone doeas a bit with a folding bow saw and some heaving, should be fine.

finally; maybe if they are paintballing/little soldiers activities it may be an insurace thing to keep us out of there.

Posted 2 months ago #

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