I was leading a ride out a week ago up around Bordley Farm near Mastiles Lane. (GRID SD941648) When the a bloke pulled over next to us to tell us it was private land and to back.

Not wanting to make it a poor situation we altered the route to avoid the farm, however I think that it must be reported to the correct authorities to make sure that work is not done to remove/block the bridleway.

Who would I report it to?  The Yorkshire Dales National Park or Craven Council?

Thanks

Both.

Did you know have a map to show the bloke?

How do you know it was not private? Many bridleways pass through private land and are not automatically a right of way. The landowner can ask you to leave at any time.

Rights of Way Team for the National Park.

But, if my Grid Reference checker is correct ( https://gridreferencefinder.com/ ), then you were on a FP, not a Bridleway, so check that first. The BW exits the farmyard in a different spot, and I have never had any problems with the farmer at Bordley Green when using the BW.

How do you know it was not private? Many bridleways pass through private land and are not automatically a right of way. The landowner can ask you to leave at any time.

That’s wrong. 100% incorrect.

If you are on a waymarked public right if way such as a bridleway or footpath then you have the right to cross and recross, even if that RoW is on private land. There are of course caveats around keeping dogs on leads, not straying from the path, closing all gates etc but you can’t be asked to leave a public RoW, nor can it be blocked by the landowner.

If it needs to be blocked (eg for major groundworks), then the landowner needs to apply for a temporary restriction from the council/Highways Authority.

If you’re off route, then yes, it’s reasonable for the landowner to ask you to rejoin the correct path because you’re no longer on de facto public land, you’re on private land.

There’s a whole range of requirements that fall on the landowner not to keep dangerous animals in fields through which a public RoW passes, not to plough over a RoW, not to spray pesticides over it.

Report to Highways Authority and National Park.

Many bridleways pass through private land and are not automatically a right of way. The landowner can ask you to leave at any time.

People have no more right to block a right of way that goes across private land or try and stop people using it than they do a road.

People have no more right to block a right of way that goes across private land or try and stop people using it than they do a road.
Not all footpaths are rights of way, you are correct here, however there is a mistake being made here in assuming that a footpath is automatically a ‘right of way’. Most are. But not all.

Just looked at map. That grid ref shows you are on a FP. Which way did you approach Bordley from?

Ridden through the farm scores of times over the years and never had an issue.

Never had any problem with the farmer at Bordley, my wife used to ride up there with the dog and had no problems. As Martin says if the grid ref you’ve given is where you were then you were on a footpath. There’s three BWs in and out of Bordley: the access road; the lane leading west to Lee Gate Farm and one leading SSE to Lainger House.

Sorry, may have been slightly out with the grid reference.  I was on the bridleway that goes through Bordley, we had come up the road from Malham moor, with the intention to go onto Lee Gate, in the end just turned North and went up to Mastiles Lane.  We were not on the FP.  Was just trying to get a grid to help from OS mapping from the Hug this morning.

I didn’t show the bloke the map, it was an easy alteration and there was no need to get into an argument.

The reason I mention it is that I have done this ride tens of times without a hitch, didn’t know if the farm had been bought out as the path going to it had just been re-tarmac’ed too.

Ill contact both later on today.

Not all footpaths are rights of way, you are correct here, however there is a mistake being made here in assuming that a footpath is automatically a ‘right of way’. Most are. But not all.

No, footpaths and bridleways are rights of way, you’re wrong.

You might be confusing it with paths or roads shown on os maps that aren’t shown as FP, BW or public roads. Like in Scotland those denote that a path exists but make no indication whether its a right of way or not (in Scotland obviously the assumption is you do). E.g. a road upto a farm will be shown as a road even if its not got public right of way. But if there’s a green or orange dashed line then there is a right of way on foot or bike/horse.

The exception is that OS maps may be out of date or not accurately reflect the definitive map. But those cases are very rare. There’s one near my parents thats a footpath on os maps, but ends up in a resevoir constructed in the 70’s and the pumping station (obviously no access) and would have to go through the deer park (10ft fences and locked gates) and definitley isnt a footpath on the definitive map.

That is definitely odd – so one of the farms has a new tenant/owner? Sounds like he needs a reminder of where the ROWs are. So this was on the tarmac after the three-way BW split at the bottom of the drop on MML?

I’ve only needed to contact folk over ROW problems in the Dales a couple of times, but I normally go direct to the ranger teams, who are pretty good.

For South Dales, that would be:

Phone: 01756 751631
Mobile: 07584 593309
Email: Kate.Hilditch@yorkshiredales.org.uk
Post: Colvend, Hebden Road, Grassington, Skipton, North Yorkshire, BD23 5LB

A lat/long reference might work better unless you’ve got a full grid ref.

Many bridleways pass through private land and are not automatically a right of way. The landowner can ask you to leave at any time.

You what now? I dare say there are very few bridleways that don’t pass through private land. “Bridleway” is the term used to donate a particular type of right of way – by definition you have the right and the landowner cannot ask you to leave.

Yes that’s right, at the three way split.  Ill drop them an email.  It was only speculation that it was someone new in the farm given the fact that I was challenged for the first time ever, and that some significant work had been done to the track.

Thanks for everyone’s input.

Could also be worth contacting the PRoW team at NYCC.