Bridleway puzzlement

[Zaphodsotherhead]

I've been taking my dog walking down a nearby bridleway very occasionally, because there are sometimes sheep on an adjacent field. Obviously she is on the lead whenever stock are about, but the main part of the track is fully fenced and stockproof, so we've been walking that bit off lead.

Today I went past and someone has stuck a 'No Dog Walking. This is a bridlepath for horses only' on the gate. My understanding was that bridleways are public rights of way and that you can't restrict who uses it to the extent of saying 'horses only'.

I won't be walking my dog down there again, obviously, someone clearly feels very strongly about it, but is it legal to stop dog walkers? There are no signs on any of the gates saying dogs must be on a lead or anything but we've got lambing sheep around, so dogs should be on leads pretty much everywhere here anyway.

I thought bridleway is open to anyone- not just horses and riders- the term refers to how the path is made and what use it is suitable for-ie big enough for riding horses but not tarmaced like a road and not small like a footpath 👍🏻 I get people are walking their dogs in different areas or maybe taking them for longer walks- where I go with my dogs I’ve come across loads of people out walking- whereas normally I don’t see a living soul 😂 maybe the horse rider doesn’t like to share?😂

Bridleway is for walkers, cyclists and horse riders. Footpath just for walkers. So no you can't ban dogs

Nope. Bridleways are for walkers (+/- dogs) ,and horses.. although yabu letting your dog off lead when there may be horses using it too.

Bridleways are open to all, I’d report it to your Rights of Way person (we have one locally that we report broken gates/obstructions to-I’m a rider).

Unless it is a permissive path and not a Right of Way there isn’t any reason it can be restricted without proper signage (they can temporarily close or re-route paths).

afaik, a bridleway just means a footpath that allows horses

i would continue to walk your dog there, but maybe keep on a lead?

A bridleway is ok for you to walk your dog. Walkers, cyclists and horse riders are free to use with priority being extended to the horse riders. Example is if safe cyclists slow down or stop to allow the horse to pass and dog walkers ensure dogs are either on lead or under control when a horse is passing.
This being said I’ve been run into by a cyclist racing around the corner and there is a local dog walker who lets his dogs chase the horses on a regular basis 🤦🏼‍♀️ As with everything in life if everyone was a bit kinder and more tolerant to one another it would work fine.
You have every right to walk on the bridleway, someone is probably pissed off at either a dog worrying the sheep nearby or had a dog attack their horse. Just my guess tho 🤷🏼‍♀️

There’s a lane to my yard and a house halfway down. The owners have put up about 20 posters/stickers saying ‘No parking’, ‘Take your litter home’ plus various other instructions. It amuses me, they must have bugger all else to do. Putting up a no dogs sign is a bit silly. As long as you can see ahead in case there’s a horse coming, then ignore.

I’d rather have the dog on a lead if I was riding, mine has never got used to dogs, despite the rowdy buggers at my yard. He’s a big lump so spooks can look a bit dramatic. Perfectly fine with dogs heeling/on lead, bit prancy with loose ones running round.

Yes, you're correct, unless there is any doubt about it being a public bridleway?

I can sympathise if everyone is suddenly using it as an alternative for badly controlled dogs with the British public's new found obsession with the countryside, but even so a polite notice reminding people to keep their dogs under control would be a better first choice. It can also be frustrating that when we have so few places to ride they can sometimes be almost unusable because of people with loads of other alternatives, but that doesn't give anyone the right to dictate it's only for horses.

Dogs are definitely allowed on bridleways - there isn’t even a priority given for horses - although it would be considered polite for dogs walkers and cyclists to give way to horses as often the only reason the bridleway is still accessible is through local bridlepath groups who fight to keep the right of way open.

There’s also something going on at the moment (I’ve not been paying too much attention to the local bridleways group at the moment sorry) regarding bridleway reclassification - they get taken over by walkers and get reclassified as footpaths so the amenity is lost - could be who ever has placed the sign doesn’t want that happening - there’s a lot of rights of way reclassification going on at the moment.

Just to reassure horse riders (I am also one) that it's an absolutely straight path, you can see anyone coming for half a mile, so no chance of suddenly coming upon anyone! And it's so rural, I've never even SEEN a horse and rider using it! Although, from the hoofmarks, they clearly do occasionally, but it's not exactly poached up or anything. Looks like only a couple of local riders use it. Is it possible for a bridleway to be a permissive path only or something?

I might get on to the local footpaths people.

Sounds like someone (the sign poster not the OP) has misunderstood what a bridleway is, or wants to discourage other legal users of the right of way, which includes pedestrians, with or without dogs, and cyclists.

I walk in the country a lot and as far as I'm aware, there is no such thing as a horse exclusive path. I do know where there are some 'gallops' ie a section of path that has been informally designated as somewhere where horseriders can safely take their horse for a gallop and these are clearly signposted as such. There is probably no legal ban for other users but for your own safety, it's obviously unwise to walk on a path that might have horses barrelling along it - both the ones I know of are in areas where there are numerous other paths and it doesn't sound like this is what the OP has seen on the bridleway she refers to anyway.

BarbaraofSeville horses shouldn't be bar

You need to look on a ordinance survey map to see if it is formally marked, normally if a firms, path there are also Way markers, or signs pointing in the direction you should go if permissive these don’t be there. However as others have said if it’s marked as a bridleway that’s for walkers, cyclists and horses regardless of being a proper bridleway or a permissive one. Your local borough or district council will have a rights of way officer who should be able to help

There is probably no legal ban for other users but for your own safety, it's obviously unwise to walk on a path that might have horses barrelling along it

You can't just take a public right of way, "designate" it as somewhere horses can gallop and say that people shouldn't walk along it.

The local council should also have a "definitive map" which shows all the rights of way. They can be difficult to find online but I have managed it! Mine also had a form you could fill in to report problems.

Land registry definition

As others have said, you’d need to double check on a an OS map to see if it is a permissive bridleway or public bridleway. If the latter you are fine to walk there.

So no riders either then???

I imagine either a rider is having trouble with offlead dogs. Or the owner of the land and sheep is having trouble with offlead dogs. The sheep may just be getting stressed with the presence of dogs, especially as the path probably wasn't used as much before.

soupdragon totally agree, something went wrong mid post saying the same. Riders should only be cantering where the way is completely clear of other users. If someone else is there it's tough. No wonder some people think us riders are snooty.

I've checked, as some of you suggested, on the OS map. It's marked as a 'trackway', not permissive. I've emailed the local paths officer too.

It's difficult, as I completely understand the need to keep sheep safe and give riders somewhere to ride (although up here the general advice is to stay on your home fields at the moment). And I won't be walking my dog there again as someone is clearly so opposed to it. But it's a safe, fully fenced track that runs for about half a mile, then through a field (with a hunting gate) down to a river, where there's a crossing for horses. It's completely straight and wide enough to be able to avoid anyone coming (although I have never even seen another person down there, let alone horses). My dog is only off the lead for the half mile fully fenced stretch (she's a sod at the best of times and would NEVER be off the lead if there was any human/horse/sheep/cow/otherdog visible for miles).

So I'm not quite sure what the person objecting is objecting TO. If it's the fact that there are sheep on the far end of the track, then put up a sign saying 'All dogs MUST be on leads, stock ahead' or something. But to 'forbid' dogs, when it isn't even legal to do so...well. It's that that I'm objecting to, rather than anything else.

I may have too much time on my hands, I am fully aware...

Some people just object, they may have had problems, they may just be miserable

It's an actual laminated sign though, not just a bit of paper pinned to the gate. Someone has printed it out, laminated it and then nailed it to the gate, they've taken some trouble! I'm assuming it's from the farm next to the path (and was SO tempted to go and knock on the door and ask what their problem is!). Like I said, they've every right to be worried about their sheep, but I didn't think they could dictate that ONLY horses be allowed to use the path.

That was what I wanted to clarify. And I contacted the paths officer because it could be the thin end of the wedge and they might start 'forbidding' all sorts of actions on the road around the farm!

The whole footpath/ bridleway thing causes problems in general because people think that bridleway means that only horses are allowed. When I did my dofe expedition years ago, we were met at the end of a similar sounding bridleway by an angry landowner telling us that this was a bridleway FOR HORSES and not for hikers, and that they'd "told the school" that they were fed up with teenagers using it for dofe. We weren't attached to any school, so we were a bit baffled, but of course we just apologised and left, being 14 and intimidated. But yeah, bridleways are usually right of way for people on foot too.

Bakedpotatoandgin - around where I live there is a huge horse contingent (I am one of them!) so many many bridleways and not that many footpaths! Where the bridleway in question is there are at least three separate horse-owning places. But there is also miles and miles of track, field and other bridleways; it's not as though horse riders have only this stretch to go on to be safe from roads etc. The roads are also extremely quiet (which is why I run them).

I sort of have a foot in both camps here. I know how irritating it is to only have one stretch on a whole ride where you can canter, and to find a family very slowly strolling down the middle of it. My last horse HATED small dogs and would try to stamp on them, so I know how annoying and dangerous loose dogs can be. And I have plenty of places to go with my dog, where she can run loose and be safe.

It's the legality or otherwise of sticking up the sign, I think, that annoyed me. It seemed - high handed. A polite 'please don't take your dog down here at the moment, we have sheep and lambs on the far field,' would have done just as well.

On bridleways cyclists should give way to horses and walkers, horses give way to walkers. As an individual on foot you should have equal rights to access.