Roaming along the Third way

RIGHT to roam - what a wonderful concept that is. There can surely be few more basic freedoms than to be allowed to walk across open land. I write the above words as one who readily exercises his right to roam around the pavements of York. Circumstances conspire to keep me from less cluttered spaces, but my head is often in the clouds above some distant moor, as it were.

When it was keen to be elected, the Labour Party pledged to allow people free access to the 12 per cent of England and Wales classed as mountain, moorland, heath, downland and common land. A fine principle - but, as tends to be the way with New Labour, high intention was diverted, at least temporarily.

Much huffing complaint from the landed gentry made the Cabinet nervous, and so the Government began one of its beloved consultation exercises. It is tempting to wonder if the point of such surveys is that they let the Government shilly-shally for so long that we all forget about whatever issue is being investigated.

According to a report this week, 80 per cent of those consulted over the right to roam said that they supported open access. With such a thumping mandate, we can surely expect an early announcement from the Government.

The freedom to walk across open land is almost a socialist principle, which must be what made New Labour nervous. It is surely wrong that wealth should enable people to control great tracts of land. This land is our land and, so long as we are respectful guests, we should be able to visit anywhere. That much should be evident, whatever your political party - except that the old, landed sector of the Conservative Party has traditionally taken against walkers.

For some reason this Government likes to listen to those who once would have been its foes, probably so that Tony Blair can emphasise his newness as he strides along Third Avenue, or whatever he calls this route we are now on. So it was that he allowed his ear to be bent by the land owners.

IF the right to roam is granted, that will be a great day. George Wilkinson, who guides Evening Press readers on our Saturday walks, certainly thinks so.

"The beauty of right to roam is that it is three words and people can understand that," he says. George's fear is that too many legal conditions may be imposed, making the situation complicated - so much so that you will need to have "a lawyer's mentality to understand it".

Either that or you will to go for a walk with a lawyer. George doesn't seem keen on that precaution.

Talking to George makes me want to hunt out my old walking boots. A good place to start would seem to be the Nawton Towers Estate near Helmsley, or Bransdale Moor as it is also known. It may take a while, though, as there are 14,500 acres in all, stretching from the east side of Bilsdale to the west side of Farndale.

The estate land is owned by Lady Clarissa Colin, but has been open to the public since the early Eighties following a deal between the estate and the Treasury over capital transfer tax.

This open land is not much explored, though George Wilkinson occasionally likes to lead Evening Press walkers on to Bransdale Moor. George has sometimes wondered if there is a conspiracy to keep quiet about this beautiful moor. A spokesman for the North York Moors national park authority says: "It is a very remote area and we don't particularly direct people there. We don't flag it up but it isn't a policy or anything."

Another spokesman rings back later, pointing out that there are walks and signposts on the estate. "It's not something that we actively promote but it's there for people to discover," he adds.

Now where did I put those boots?

Follow some of George Wilkinson's walks for yourself in our Leisure and Lifestyle section under Country Walks.

22/10/98

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.