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A trail is usually a path, track or unpaved lane or road. In the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland, path or footpath is the preferred term for a walking trail. The term is also applied in North America to routes along rivers, and sometimes to highways. In the US, the term was historically used for a route into or through wild territory used by emigrants. In the USA "trace" is a synonym for trail, as in Natchez Trace. Some trails are single use and can be used only for walking, cycling, horse riding, snowshoeing and cross-country skiing; others, as in the case of a bridleway in the UK, are multi-use, and can be used by walkers, cyclists and equestrians. There are also unpaved trails used by dirt bikes and other off-road vehicles, and in some places, like the Alps, trails are used for moving cattle and other livestock.
A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle of Man. SSSI/ASSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in the United Kingdom are based upon them, including national nature reserves, Ramsar sites, Special Protection Areas, and Special Areas of Conservation. The acronym "SSSI" is often pronounced "triple-S I".
The Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wales are areas of countryside that have been designated for statutory protection due to their significant landscape value in Wales. There are currently four areas wholly in Wales with this designation, and another spanning the Wales-England border, accounting for 4% of Wales' land area. The responsibility of designating areas in recognition of their national importance is devolved to Wales and performed by Natural Resources Wales, on behalf of the Welsh Government. The designation is also used in England, and Northern Ireland, but not in Scotland where the national scenic area (NSA) designation is used instead. Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty enjoy levels of protection from development similar to those of Welsh national parks, but unlike national parks, the responsible AONB bodies do not have their own planning powers, instead are performed by local authorities. They also differ from national parks in their more limited opportunities for extensive outdoor recreation. It has been proposed that the designation be renamed to National Landscapes of Wales, however, such proposals have failed to be followed through.
The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom implemented to comply with European Council Directive 79/409/EEC on the conservation of wild birds. In short, the act gives protection to native species, controls the release of non-native species, enhances the protection of Sites of Special Scientific Interest and builds upon the rights of way rules in the National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949. The Act is split into 4 parts covering 74 sections; it also includes 17 schedules.
A listed building, or listed structure, is one that has been placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Historic Environment Scotland in Scotland, Cadw in Wales and the Northern Ireland Environment Agency in Northern Ireland.
A footpath is a type of thoroughfare that is intended for use only by pedestrians and not other forms of traffic such as motorized vehicles, cycles, and horses. They can be found in a wide variety of places, from the centre of cities, to farmland, to mountain ridges. Urban footpaths are usually paved, may have steps, and can be called alleys, lanes, steps, etc.
In England and Wales, other than in the 12 Inner London boroughs and the City of London, the right of way is a legally protected right of the public to pass and re-pass on specific paths. The law in England and Wales differs from Scots law in that rights of way exist only where they are so designated, whereas in Scotland any route that meets certain conditions is defined as a right of way, and in addition, there is a general presumption of access to the countryside. Private rights of way or easements also exist.
The national parks of the United Kingdom,, are areas of relatively undeveloped and scenic landscape. Despite their name, they are quite different from national parks in many other countries, which are usually owned and managed by governments as protected community resources, and which do not usually include permanent human communities. In the UK an area designated as a national park may include substantial settlements and human land uses that are often integral parts of the landscape. Land within national parks remains largely in private ownership. These parks are therefore not truly "national parks" according to the internationally accepted standard of the IUCN but they are areas of outstanding landscape where habitation and commercial activities are restricted.
A green lane is a type of road, usually an unmetalled rural route.
The Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA) is a national park authority in England, legally responsible for Dartmoor in Devon. It came into existence in its present form in 1997, being preceded by a committee of Devon County Council and the Dartmoor National Park Committee from 1 April 1974.
Rivington Pike is a hill on Winter Hill, part of the West Pennine Moors at Rivington, Chorley in Lancashire, England. The nearest towns are Adlington and Horwich. The land and building are owned and managed by Chorley Council. The Pike Tower is a prominent local landmark and is located at the summit, it is part of Lever Park. The area is popular with hill walkers and for mountain biking.
A bridle path, also bridleway, equestrian trail, horse riding path, ride, bridle road, or horse trail, is a trail or a thoroughfare that is used by people riding on horses. Trails originally created for use by horses often now serve a wider range of users, including equestrians, hikers, and cyclists. Such paths are either impassable for motorized vehicles, or vehicles are banned. The laws relating to allowable uses vary from country to country.
The Cambrian Way, initially an unofficial long distance footpath in Wales running from Cardiff to Conwy, was officially recognised in 2019. Primarily a mountain walk, it runs over many of the highest and most scenically beautiful areas of Wales. It was pioneered in the 1960s and 1970s by walker Tony Drake, who later produced a guidebook of the walk.
The Open Spaces Society is a campaign group that works to protect public rights of way and open spaces in the United Kingdom, such as common land and village greens. It is Britain's oldest national conservation body and a registered charity.
Historic England is an executive non-departmental public body of the British Government sponsored by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It is tasked with protecting the historic environment of England by preserving and listing historic buildings, scheduling ancient monuments, registering historic Parks and Gardens and by advising central and local government.
Walking is one of the most popular outdoor recreational activities in the United Kingdom, and within England and Wales there is a comprehensive network of rights of way that permits access to the countryside. Furthermore, access to much uncultivated and unenclosed land has opened up since the enactment of the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000. In Scotland the ancient tradition of universal access to land was formally codified under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. In Northern Ireland, however, there are few rights of way, or other access to land.
The Ramblers is the trading name of the Ramblers Association, Great Britain's leading walking charity, celebrating the pleasures of walking and protecting the places people love to walk. The Ramblers is also a membership organisation with around 100,000 members and a network of volunteers who maintain and protect the path network. They believe everyone, everywhere should be able to experience the joy of walking and have access to green spaces to walk close to home.
Right of way is "the legal right, established by usage or grant, to pass along a specific route through grounds or property belonging to another", or "a path or thoroughfare subject to such a right". A similar right of access also exists on land held by a government, lands that are typically called public land, state land, or Crown land. When one person owns a piece of land that is bordered on all sides by lands owned by others, an easement may exist, or be created so as to initiate a right of way through the bordering land.
The Institute of Public Rights of Way and Access Management (IPROW) is an independent society representing individuals involved in the management of public rights of way and other access in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Its members are principally local government officers, some are employees in a private company performing the contracted-out rights of way function, and a minority are self-employed specialists, lawyers or performing associated work in private, public or third sectors.
The Byways and Bridleways Trust (BBT) is a charity which exists to protect bridleways and byways in England and Wales. It is a prescribed consultee for proposed changes or effects on public rights of way made under the Highways Act 1980, Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 and Town and Country Planning Act 1990. As such, the Trust responds to consultations from government, government agencies, local authorities and potential applicants for planning permission and changes to public rights of way. The Trust takes the opportunity where presented to respond to Parliamentary calls for evidence such as on the Marine Bill The Trust's aim is:
