AIBU to be fed up with walkers trespassing on our land?

[Pricelessadvice]

We have a family farm that, unfortunately, has a footpath that runs through it.
The footpath turns and goes into some woods and off our property but many people ignore the turn and just carry on around our land. This is mostly dog walkers. They then let their dog crap on our fields and just leave it. We take a crop off the land- some years a hay crop, some years beans, others wheat- but people just don’t seem to care.
I am always polite when I see someone trespassing. I ask them if they know they have left the footpath and I point them back in the direction of it. 9 people out of 10 get really arsey about it. I get all the excuses in the book- “it’s just fields/I always walk here/I can do what I want/it’s just grass/other people do it”
Ive had off lead dogs chasing my liveries horses (who have permission to ride the headlands), sheep being worried, the list goes on.

There are plenty of signs telling people where the footpath is and where it isn’t, but they get ignored.

When I try to explain to people that they wouldn’t like it if I walked my dogs in their garden every day and let them poo everywhere, they just argue that it’s not the same coz “these are fields”
SIGH
The Covid year was a bloody nightmare with people wandering everywhere.
When did people get so entitled? AIBU to think that people just think they can do whatever the hell they want nowadays?

Ahhh the arrogant dog walking self entitled brigade.

In my area thankfully they are a minority.

I'd invest in an electric fence and section off the right of way footpath until its diverted back into the woods.

This

Walker here! Sometimes it is really hard to know where the footpath actually goes, but there's absolutely no excuse for wandering off the footpath when the route is clear and when there are specific signs asking you not to. I'd probably run an electric fence along the route for a while - that should stop dog walkers using the field and they'll hopefully tell all their dog-walking friends.

I find it particularly stupid that anyone does this on a golf course, purely from the point of view of their own safety. A couple of walks we do cross a golf course and we are always hyper-vigilant and get across and out of the way ASAP. Don't want to be brained by a golf ball!

One course we cross has a bell that you are meant to ring as you start to cross the course so golfers know you are there. Thankfully it is only a short stretch and the other end clearly visible so you can make straight for it.

Can you shoot dogs that worry live stock . I'd put a sign up saying that's what happens

You have to be an idiot to not fence your boundaries.

We have a FP along our wildflower meadow and on day 1, we had it fenced off at great expense and have clear Private signs, but we STILL get dog walkers climbing over the fence to retrieve frisbees and balls. Drives DH mad, he’s spent a quarter of a mill buying the land and stocking it with over 1,000 new trees, tens of thousands of flowers, etc and some twat comes and tramples over the new bulbs etc.

i guess an electric fence would be a cheaper option but you shouldn’t have to.

We have a private track on our farm that leads to some fields, we often run young heifers up it as it is the only access we have to these fields. Last year we encountered a lady walking her lab who argued with us about who might have had right of way, 25 heifers going out for the first time that year, so pretty fresh and scatty or her. She honestly thought we would turn them around and hold them on a public road so she could continue to trespass.

We also have footpaths that run through the middle of fields so if we fenced them we would be blocking access to the other half of the field for us or the cows, it would make harvest or grazing very difficult. It should not be necessary, people should stick to the well maintained footpaths. And pick up their dog shit.

Are you sure the signs are clear? I ask because I’m a frequent walker of footpaths and have found signage often very bad on/near farms and houses. Often this has been deliberate and I’ve had to report the landowners for blocking footpaths. The ones who don’t block them, often make them completely unclear to discourage walkers from using them.

After a lot of difficulty with a local private house owner who did this, the council went to speak to them and explained that if they marked the path, people would be off their land quicker and not wander about in confusion. That landowner then literally painted footsteps down his drive then had arrows pointing through the yard to the next bit of the path. When the team revisited him months later, he admitted it was actually a lot better as people carefully followed the marking and got through quickly. He was never going to win trying to conceal the route.

Now, I say all that because it might be that some walkers are assuming you’re doing similar. I also note you say “unfortunately” you have a footpath. That suggests maybe you’re pissed off with the walkers in general whether they stay on the path or not. Unfriendly landowners get people’s backs up because they’re entitled to use the footpath and feel the landowners are trying to destroy the PROWs.

So, put up a polite sign on the entry point to the path, asking that dogs be kept on leads at all times and that people follow the footpath signs. Then put clear signage up, especially at points where there are turns or where people might mistake the way (eg assuming it goes across the fields when it goes into the woods) and ensure access to the woods is clear and easy.

I find it hard to believe that 9 out of 10 people are being arsey with you. The vast majority of walkers want to follow the correct route. Either your attitude is inadvertently putting their backs up, or they’re not ‘genuine’ walkers and just using your land to exercise their dogs - which they could try to do, footpath or not.

Our local farmers post on the village facebook group if they have this problem. It’s rare it’s people from outside the area, just usually entitled villagers. The farmers also provide several permissive paths and a threat to close those usually does the trick. You never see anyone posting anything other than support for the farmers position. If your farm really is in the middle of nowhere and the walkers have driven there then FB won’t work.

Even ordinary fencing costs thousands. OP I feel your pain. Our PROW goes from the farm entrance, directly through the farm yard and then down a track, then through our end field. We’re totally fine with people walking as long as they are respectful of our privacy and sensible around animals. We did have to put more signs up showing the way and saying to keep dogs leashed (or they were at risk of being shot - our poor chickens!) and not to approach farm machinery. I haven’t had anyone being arsey but unbelievably one family who were encouraging their child to sit in the small tractor 😂😱 Like it was a theme park and not a potentially extremely dangerous vehicle. Mad. Engaging with local walking groups might be an idea?

I’m so grateful to live in Scotland where we have right to roam access to most rural areas. I get your frustration though, particularly when people walk on fields with crops/ livestock…that’s not on. More signage might be required or some cctv style cameras?

I’m not surprised people get arsey - I live in a rural area and come across this a lot with dog owners.
It’s currently nesting time and near lambing time up on the moors, with signs up all over the place - does that stop entitled wankers letting their dogs roam free? Course it doesn’t!

A local farm had awful problems with this and ended up fencing all the footpaths off - people were not happy but had to suck it up. It’s reduced sheep worrying and dog poo bags being eaten by livestock.

Honestly so many humans are selfish fuckers!

We've gone for more signage that says dogs will be shot.

At both ends of the footpath we have a clear map and then clear markers (wooden poles painted white)

But these people live in the country. They’re from the OP’s area, presumably, as they’re hardly driving miles and miles to walk their dogs on her land. They’re not clueless townies who think the countryside is their personal theme park.

Sympathies, OP. I’m from a country where there are no rights of way across private land at all and was totally charmed by and respectful of them when I moved to the UK. (And fascinated — especially when visiting friends near Oxford who had a right of way up their drive, around the front of their house and out over a stile in their side wall, so you would be doing the washing up and see hikers passing a foot from the kitchen window. Once someone did lay out a full picnic on their front lawn and was very put out when instructed to move on.)

What I did notice in a midlands village I lived in later that villagers with dogs had made their own walking routes on private land near the village and clearly felt that although these were not rights of way, they kind of were, really (to their minds) as they’d been using them for so long.

In your case, if clear signage hasn’t worked, I think you need to consider fencing off the path, maddening though it is.

Great post 😊

You "never leave the path because you'll come across a boundary"?

How about never leaving the path because you'd be trespassing?

An important clarification there is right to RESPONSIBLE access - some people do seem to forget that bit.

People should have dogs under control and keep away from livestock and pick up - but in Scotland we have a right to roam as long as don't damage crops, rock up in people's back gardens or generally act like a dick. Oddly this often means fewer paths outside of popular hills etc and the occasional run in with hostile gamekeepers. The Ramblers give good advice on being a responsible walker.

You have to be an idiot to think that fencing off a (or many) ROWs on an arable farm, that needs access for machinery to crops, and could be up 1,000 acres, is even possible.

I'm clearly the only one trying to visualise this and would like a map or photos of the path etc 😆

If people are constantly not turning towards the woods and continuing the 'wrong' way, has that area been worn and now looks like the path continues? Could you put up an arrow towards the woods and as others have said- private property past this point, dogs will be shot, poison in use etc. Ideally, I'd have an electric fence around the area, but realise its costly and without seeing a pic, might not be feasible.

We’ve stock fenced the public footpaths as it was the only way to stop people letting their dogs do laps and shit everywhere 🙄 fortunately the paths run down the outside of the fields so we could, cost a bloody fortune though and we’ve sacrificed about a fifth of usable grazing.
There were also complaints on the village FB group about having “used those fields for years” - should have bloody bought them then mate!

Really really clear signage. Like a kids trail signage. If the field they are going in is separate from the footpath put some geese in there although they do need locking up at night.

when ive been in fields that are like this they have fenced off along the path

The problem is we have co-operated with CROWS re signage, repairing styles, clearing the path. I also support public rights of way but it should not be an unfettered right. Keeping to paths, keeping dogs on the lead not chucking empty beer cans, crisps packets into people's gardens, not camping in people's gardens. Some of this stuff is just basic consideration but if livestock is hurt or worse, crops are damaged, etc, I can see why some people get to the point they want to restrict access.