Safety fears provoke the removal of a much-loved jump trail, near Dorchester, by Forestry England.
Trails built in Puddletown Forest, near Dorchester, have begun to be taken down by Forestry England as they were built without permission. Forestry England said some of the “big features” are “dangerous” and apparently built without consideration for “other visitors’ safety.” Environmental concerns were also cited in the statement made by Forestry England, and the organisation has urged that the safety of “all forest users and the environment” must be prioritised as justification for removing the trails.
It’s important to note that not all the trails within Puddletown Forest are being removed – merely a select few with features that Forestry England has deemed “dangerous.” A post on the ‘Dorchester: News and Views’ Facebook group shows the extent of the trail removal, with a video of a worker on a digger.
The trails before and after being removed, courtesy of Laura Bough in the Dorchester: News and Views Facebook page
Why are the Puddletown Forest MTB Trails being removed?
Recently the BBC reported that several of the bike trails within Puddletown Forest are being dismantled due to safety fears. As MBR understands it, the trails at Puddletown Forest have been built without permission from Forestry England. The land is leased to Forestry England for the purpose of “growing timber,” and thus public rights of way are more restricted than some other areas under its jurisdiction.
However, the trails have been there for a number of years, and Forestry England has been previously aware of the trail building activities. So why has the organisation decided to take action now?
A local Forestry England spokesperson told MBR: “Forestry England supports mountain biking in the nation’s forests, and we love seeing people enjoying spending time in nature. There are lots of partnership groups across the country that help us manage our mountain biking offering. Unfortunately, mountain bike trails in Puddletown Forest have been built without our permission. These big features have been removed because they were dangerous and have been built without considering other visitors’ health and safety and how they might impact the wildlife and archaeology that’s there.
“Trail builders may not have been aware of the damage caused to the soil, trees and biodiversity of the woodland. Some habitats here are protected for wildlife and we have a legal responsibility to look after this woodland. Many of Forestry England’s team are riders themselves and appreciate that the unauthorised bike trails at Puddletown Forest are much loved by many, however, the potential risks can’t be ignored, and the safety of all forest users and the environment must be prioritised.”
Puddletown MTB trails courtesy of Trailforks
How can riders work with landowners to develop local trails?
What we can gleam from this, however, is that Forestry England hasn’t removed all of the trails built there without permission. In fact, there appears to be plenty of other trails still there to be ridden in the woods, minus the “big features.” If we look at Trail Forks, for example, you can see there are over 20 trails on the map. Admittedly, they haven’t been updated in a while, but the map shows the extent of the trails previously built there.
It would be easy to get behind every trail builder and every trail that gets built throughout the UK as a MTB media outlet, but in this case, Forestry England looks to be working well within the organisation’s right to remove some of the features. The trails in question had been in the forest for some time, yes, but by building what Forestry England deems to be “dangerous” features, as well as potentially damaging the surrounding areas, it’s not difficult to understand why it felt it had to act.
Whilst it may be frustrating to trail builders when they feel that landowners or governing bodies aren’t listening to their requests, it’s crucial that we as mountain bikers work with people like the UK MTB Trail Alliance in developing better relationships and thus better arguments ‘for’ the creation of trails on privately owned land. Otherwise, we run the risk of creating more of an adversarial relationship that is more damaging in the long run.
MBR asked Forestry England how riders can work with the organisation to develop trails in appropriate places, and they said:
“We’re keen to work in partnership with groups who are able to help us manage our mountain biking offer in the right place. It’s illegal to dig and build trails without our permission, there are many reasons why trails might not be suitable in certain locations due to ecological, land ownership, environmental, heritage sensitivities and visitor safety.”