Campaign briefs

Chris Hatherill — Tue, 29 Nov 2011 07:26:29 +0000

A new plaque has been unveiled on a vital footbridge over the Alderley Edge bypass in memory of the man who helped fight for it. Derek Smith, of East Cheshire Ramblers, who died in 2005, lobbied the council for four years to have the bridge included in the road’s construction plans, taking the issue to an inquiry before it was finally agreed. The Ramblers group has also installed 17 new waymarks around woodland on Alderley Edge, as part of a joint initiative with its National Trust owners.

Bath Ramblers has succeeded in getting a crucial part of the Limestone Link route restored along the River Avon in Batheaston. Having suffered from years of flooding and erosion, it was deemed unsafe by the local council. Now, following the persistent efforts of local Ramblers footpath secretary David Waterstone and a threat to serve a court order, the council has provided the funds to reopen this idyllic stretch of path using traditional local materials.

Thirty people have contributed to the Isle of Wight Ramblers’ Donate a Gate scheme to replace inaccessible stiles since it started 18 months ago. Meanwhile, its footpath working party is busy helping the cash-strapped council install 300 fingerposts and replace boardwalks across the island.

Norfolk Ramblers has spent more than £7,000 to have a boardwalk laid along a boggy part of the Nar Valley Way to keep walkers’ feet dry during their winter strolls.

Edinburgh Young Walkers joined the Friends of Nevis for a day building and maintaining footpaths atop Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis, following a successful litter-picking exercise earlier in the year.

Walsall Ramblers has added its voice to a 999-signature-strong petition against a proposed wind turbine in a Green Belt beauty spot by Rushall Canal.

Congleton Ramblers has helped open a new, more scenic footpath to the popular high outcrop of rocks, known as The Cloud. The group is lobbying for several others nearby.

Norfolk Ramblers wins 10-year battle

Chris Hatherill — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 17:23:44 +0000

Kings Lynn Ramblers has triumphed in a decade-long battle to reopen a public right of way across private farmland in Norfolk. The half-mile trail through Sussex Farm, near Burnham Market, was blocked by the landowner after he discovered it wasn’t on the county council’s definitive map. Research by the local Group provided evidence that the route had been in use for 20 years and was therefore a ‘de facto’ public right of way. Yet despite old maps showing a carriageway along the route as early as 1797, the council dismissed the Ramblers’ claims and the issue went to a public inquiry. But in November, the inspector’s report ordered the route to be reopened as a byway open to all traffic.

“This is a victory celebration,” said Allan Jones of Norfolk Ramblers. “We look after the footpaths and the countryside. We could not accept losing a piece of path like that.”
Eugene Suggett, Ramblers’ senior policy officer, added: “Since the application was made, the NERC Act has bitten off the motor-vehicular rights which the maps would otherwise have proved. The result is an excellent link in the network with no motor vehicles allowed.”

Walk - The Magazine of the Ramblers » Norfolk Ramblers

Campaign briefs

Norfolk Ramblers wins 10-year battle