Field Trips

Summer Field Trip, June 2010

Cross Farm, Harpenden

Situated between Harpenden and Nomansland, Wheathampsted, we were welcomed by the farmer, Mr Will Dickinson, and his son who took us around their farm and land and pointed out the challenges they are often facing when fields have Rights of Way crossing them or are in the vicinity. About a Bridleway about to be dedicated and the long delays... the LAF will be on the case and give a helpful prod to all concerned parties.

click here for more photos

Winter Field Trip, January 2010

Radlett SRFI
This area of land east of Park Street is the subject of a planning application to develop a Strategic Rail-Freight Interchange (road to rail and vice versa). It is envisaged that there are only a limited number of such interchanges nationwide, hence it strategic nature. On the former wartime airfield, which is currently farmed, a new railway is planned to enter the site, interchange warehouses will be built covering the site in buildings up to 1 km long and lorry movements will increase on the A414 / A405 and access routes to the A1(M), M1 and M25. A mitigation package of extensive country parks, permissive path routes and a few changes to the definitive network has been proposed by the developers.

Wall Hall
This former university site is owned by HCC and the farms around it are overseen by the Rural Estates team. As a result of the redevelopment of the buildings, into private residences, s106 funding was secured to upgrade and improve the rights of way network on the site. A package of improvements including; upgrades to bridleways, creating routes along former missing links in the network and surfacing improvements are underway using that funding with the cooperation of Hertsmere Borough Council's Greenways Officer, HCC's Rights of Way Service and the Rural Estates team.
Click on the links to view maps and more photos. maps: SRFI, Wall Hall; photos.

Summer Field Trip , July 2009

Winter Field Trip, January 2009

The Forum met on a very wet day in Sandridge to view the newly acquired site by the Woodland Trust, which forms part of the Heartwood Forest project. Representives of the Woodland Trust joined the Forum and were instrumental to the understanding of the project.
more discussion and contributions are hoped will come at the February Public Meeting, when once again the Woodland Trust are invited to present the project to the public and those members who could not join on the walk. The project will put together a lot of different groups and communities to work together to achieve the success of this local project.

Summer Field Trip, 2006

The theme for the Forum’s summer field trip was ““Impact of Roads on Access””. Forum members toured a number of sites looking a range of problems and solutions – this culminated in a practical demonstration, by one of the LAF members, of an at-grade horse crossing on the A414 near Colney Heath.

The the verge has been surfaced to create an off road route for pedestrians, horseriders and cyclists – which also links a number of rights of way.
Members were impressed by the cloverleaf crossing near Watford which opened last year after many years of hard work (since the early 90’s) by Hertsmere Borough Council, local users and the police. Horses, cyclists and walkers can now get across the A41 without having to risk mixing with busy traffic. This is a landmark scheme as it is the first time that non motorised users have been allowed to legally use a motorway verge – requiring ministerial permission to vary Section 16 of the Highways Act 1980 for the M1.
At Tykeswater Lane the LAF members were able to see the potential difficulties when rights of way are added to the definitive map or have their status changed. The change in status of Tykeswater from footpath to byway was confirmed in 2005 – however there are serious concerns about the safety of users on horse back and in vehicle when joining Theobald Street from the right of way.
An example of measures that have been put in place to improve crossing was seen at the “Pegasus” crossing on Bell Lane near London Colney – a light controlled crossing with specific provision for horses. However they are not a universal solution as they can only be sited on suitable stretches of road with adequate visibility. Cost is also an issue.
A stretch of the A414 highlighted typical problems faced by pedestrians, cyclists and horse riders where access routes cross busy roads. It is difficult to convey in words the impact of the horse crossing demonstration – at grade crossings certainly must deter use by some people – as this exercise was tackled by a very experienced rider on a quiet and calm horse.

Summer Field Trip, June 2005

The Forum Summer Field Trip to Broxbourne woods led by Heidi Hutton,
Projects Officer for CMS, proved a valuable insight into the improvements
being made in the area. The Forum took a circular route from The Woodman
public house which also included the newly constructed boardwalks nearing completion in Danesmead Nature Reserve, and sections of the roman road Ermine Street. A sculpture trail is planned for part of the wood and the tour provided a ‘before picture’ prior to the work beginning and the forum will have the opportunity to visit again in the autumn to see the finished result. The trip allowed the Forum to see and discuss several access points along the route.
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Spring Gathering, April 2005

The Forum met for an evening at the Waterend Barn in St. Albans to informally discuss the Forum. Members had the opportunity to air their views on how the Forum was meeting it’s requirements and how further improvements could be made. Members also provided positive feedback from their time on the Forum and what discoveries they had made by working together as a group.

Winter Walkabout, December 2004

The Forum held their first annual walkabout on Friday 10th December. This provided the opportunity for the Forum to meet socially and experience, as a group, the reality of countryside access. The Forum followed one of the Chilterns Country Walks that are widely available, starting in Lilley. The local Countryside Access Officer Tom Goldsmith accompanied them on the walk and was on hand to answer questions. Tom pointed out some of the improvements that he and his team have made recently, as well as describing proposals for future improvements. Members of the Forum commented that the day “provided a first-hand experience of the problems faced by officers trying to make the countryside more accessible to the public.”

 

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