Cycling home from work today there must have been at least 100 logs / big branches etc deliberately placed across a 1 mile stretch of bridleway. This has been happening for the last year but never to this extent. I have used this bridleway for at least 2 years now and in that time have never seen anybody else using the trail so not sure what the problem is or which idiot is doing this. I managed to hop across most of the logs but had to get off the bike several times which annoyed me. Has anybody else come across this kind of behavior and should i report it?

I think you need to go on a skills course so that you can hop all the logs… 😉

ha ha – i must admit my skills are lacking.

Take the logs home and season them for the log burner that your going to have installed before next winter.
Job sorted. 😀

It would be very amusing to see the look on the perpetrators face when MTB’er skilfully hops over the obstacle he just spent on hour putting in place.

Where is the BW?

Get cynic-al to rig up some sort of hacked together dozer attachment to the front of your bike and just plough your way through.

slainte ➡ rob

should i report it?

yes, after all if someone cut trees down and tried to block the road outside your house i am sure you go to the police.

the real issue is if they start to use fishing line, it happens all too often!

I would but I’m working on getting my browser to hide irritating signatures…

slainte 😯 al.

Gingerss – Bridleway is in Barnsley, South Yorkshire. I use it several times a month and have never seen anybody else use it. There has always been logs placed across the path but now its ridiculous.

PMK, be a bit more specific about location mate, footpaths and by ways dept are always interested in this sort of thing esp as pennine trail/european cycle route passes through s,yorks and image is every thing…..

the question is why are the logs being put there! Is it to do with cyclist or illegal off road motor bikers…
Either way as previously said above it needs to reported before this vigalantee starts using more seriously dangerous methods.
you could star raising awareness with local horse riding club and local authority’s but unless there is a injurie or serious accident the police may not take much action.
Photograph as much evidence as possible and start keeping a diary of new obstruction.

I run across this sort of thing alot.

I have a local loop and some of the trails are just that, trails through the trees. That doesn’t stop someone from setting up traps, not just logs but trees snapped off so that the sharp splintered end is sticking out so that the hole filled with dry leaves trap will see you impaled.

Have considered plotting up to catch whoever is doing it…. even if it was a footpath it would be unacceptable behaviour…. I have my son next week and we ride around these trails so I ride in front and clear stuff as we go.

A lot of very sad people about….

PMK2060

um, controversial i know but logs on a bridleway could be very dangerous for horses surely!? Deffo need to report that, mentioning horses rather than bikes may actually get something done about it too (hey i live in the cotswolds so you mention horses here and sh1t gets sorted!) 🙄

Surely obstructing a BW is a crime, the same as obstructing the highway?

Or was it a footpath?

Logs aren’t good for horses either. I do see this from time to time and it is annoying. It is also a good reason to practice hopping them. Why not just clear the logs ? If it needs more than one pair of hands then recruit some mates. There was a tree down blocking a bridleway near me, it was down for two weeks before a group of bikers with a little saw turned up, we came across them and within 10 mins we had it cleared.

Logs on a bridleway could also be put there by horseriders to liven up their route a little. Especially if they never see anyone else using the bw.

ocrider

never thought about that! 😳

Heres hoping that the answer is as innocent as that, which if the bw is near any stables, is a cert.
I had a gf way once who was the girly, horsey equivalent of a digger. Her and a few other girls from the same stable used to incur the wrath of dog walkers on a regular basis, they made the letters page of the local rag quite often… 😀

Get down there with a shovel and build them up into little kickers?

jamesco – the bridleway is near great houghton, barnsley and goes through some woods on park lane. I don’t think horse riders have put the logs down because there are also a couple of small trees that have deliberately been broken and laid across the path preventing horse riders as well.

I have a Horsey mate who once told me that if you see these near stables, the chances are that the riders/trainers have done this themselves – something to with getting the horses to lift their feet. I’m not a horse rider so switched off a bit when he was explaining it. I’ve seen it a lot and I can’t see how it would make a bridleway more interesting as they never seem high enough for that.

I’m originally from Brierley common and know the area you describe well; I know that there used to be a regular fox hunt in that area so this could explain it if they’re still doing that pseudo hunting thingy.

might be horsey lot, been done where I ride about 40 logs in a row (*well spaced though), treat it as a skills test.

If you do see the horsey lot you could try (politely) asking about it and if it was them suggest that if they were to leave a gap at one side that would be beneficial to other users and a better test of their horse control skills

A regular feature of many bridleways and a mixture of rabid ramblers, skill-building horse riders and overdeveloped-sense-of-entitlement horse riders.

could be another mountain biker setting up bunny-hop practice.

Are you sure they have been placed there as a deliberate obstruction?
Perhaps the landowner has been clearing/maintaining bridleway clearance etc. with the intention of collecting them up later?

get quite a lot of it round here, mostly it’s half hearted attempts that are easy to jump, occasionally they go mental and do loads of properly obstructive stuff.

Sad gits.

ocrider – Member
Logs on a bridleway could also be put there by horseriders to liven up their route a little. Especially if they never see anyone else using the bw.

This will almost definitely be the answer, it is a bridleway after all and riders do this to encourage the horses to lift there hoofs correctly.

Time to build some north shore 🙂

could also be put there by horseriders

as I said the stuff round our way is interspersed with obstacles completely blocking the trail, not just making it interesting, so I’d guess it’s militant walkers.

I’m not talking about BWs either 🙂