is there an issue with going for a long walk in the countryside?

[EricaNernie]

that is remote and accessible on foot?

why should this be for an hour?

It shouldn't be. Enjoy

As long as you don’t drive there, it’s fine.

There's no actual rule about it being an hour is there?

Where did this hour restriction come from??

DD and I went for a 3 hour walk today. We live in the countryside and there isn't another house near us for miles. Didn't encounter another person today whilst out nor did we see a car.

Yes – provided it is alone or with members of your household.

People must stay at home as much as possible to reduce the spread of the virus. But you can also still go outside once a day for a walk, run, cycle. When doing this you must minimise the time you are out of your home and stay at least two metres away from anyone else that isn’t from your household.

from gov.uk

It's fine as long as you're not touching farm gates or disturbing livestock.

Nothing risky or dangerous either as we want to preserve the nhs resources as much as possible.

it does not say anywhere about not touching gates. that would be ridiculous

If everyone did it the countryside would be packed

Yeah, that 'minimise the time you are out' is pretty hidden under the section about looking after your horse.
And annoyingly vague.

Ericanernie-the not touching gates thing was/is re: people who have to use the gates (ie farm workers etc) and are concerned about virus lasting on metal gates for quite a while.

No issue as far as I can see. Enjoy.

but people are not doing it where I am, the local sustrans route is packed to the gills with families cycling, as is usual for a sunny saturday. but the fields accessible via public footpaths, are BLISS

Don't lick the fences

But please, please if you possibly can, stay away from paths through farm land and near farm houses.
My nephew has to be shielded and people are roaming through their farm like never before. BIL and FIL have to open gates to run the farm, they have no idea what people are bringing on to the gates etc.

Wanderinglost... I now have visions of bored families playing “who dares lick the electric fence” and other experiments....!

As people have said, stay away from farms, livestock fields and wear gloves to open and close gates- for your health and that of the farmers too.

You don’t need to go through their fields but they do.

farms are accessed via styles
we should all wash our hands when we come in, regardless

not farms, i mean the fields are accessed via styles, following closely the footpath

Please stay away from any walks that pass through farms.

We farmers have no choice but to go through the gates every man and his dog are currently using, we have to use to them to get to livestock.

People coming from far and wide to exercise their 'right' to exercise on public rights of way are doing so through otherwise private property.

It might be a jolly day out or a loophole for you, but it's actively putting the nation's farmers at risk and we have no control over who is passing through.

....stay away from paths through farm land and near farm houses.

I know we need to be socially distancing but I think you’re taking things too far. I don’t see why farm houses need to be any more isolated than they already are, particularly to the point of not even walking on nearby paths! And I say this as someone who lives in a tiny hamlet, but imagine how precious this sounds to someone living in a dense inner city estate.

If they are worried about people touching gates then they should wear gloves and/or wash their hands when they get back, in the same way they presumably need to be careful with post and shopping.

A long walk is fine.

Start and finish at your house.

Avoid touching anything that doesn’t belong to you while your out.

This is the best way to avoid transmission to others - eg landowners, farmers etc.

It depends on whether you can do so without deviating from the footpath/ right of way. I can assure you it does a lot of harm, not to mention it's entitled as fuck, when people take it upon themselves to decide other people's property, and often livelihood, is a lovely place for a secluded walk. Or a bastard picnic area or petting zoo for the dc.

I'm seriously beginning to think the emergency legislation should have included the right to shoot trespassers.

it is a footpath
they have not been shut, unlike during the foot and mouth crisis.

Perfectly acceptable and within guidelines. Ignore the dreaded Facebook.

Tbf trainspotting most people who live in the country know where the public rights of way/footpaths are.