Disputes between landowners and walkers can be solved with friendly dialogue, writes Sylvia Thompson
Talking directly to farmers is the best way to work out walking routes through private lands in the upland areas. This point was repeated again and again at a recent two-day workshop on local involvement in countryside management.
Farmers, community workers, guesthouse owners, hillwalkers and other outdoor recreation enthusiasts gathered in the Glendalough Hotel last month to hear about the experiences of the Wicklow Uplands Council in bringing together people from all sectors of the community to develop a harmonious approach to countryside management.
Frank Nugent is a mountaineer and member of the Irish Upland Forum, another organisation which supports a partnership approach to outdoor recreational activities. "There is," he says, "a huge property debate in this country about who owns land and how access to private land interacts with publicly owned land. I believe there are practical and pragmatic ways of dealing with access problems through learning to trust one another. Legislation isn't always the best answer. In general, the number of pressure points are small and we should be able to reach agreement. Just looking for a legislative solution will leave many people unhappy."
Colin Murphy, director of the Wicklow Uplands Council, says: "We have always sought participation from local people and made an intense effort to reach consensus. As someone from Northern Ireland, I look at it as another peace process. It's equally painful but we're lucky to have the Glencree Centre for Reconciliation in Wicklow and we use it."
THE WICKLOW UPLANDS Council (www.wicklowuplands.ie), which is 10 years old this year, was formed following the guidelines of the international Local Agenda 21.
Some of the recent issues that have arisen include a farmer discovering that there was a proposal for a long-distance walking route from Dún Laoghaire, Co Dublin to join the Wicklow Way which went through much of his land. The problem was he was never asked if people could cross his land on this walking route.
"Guidebooks have been written giving details of trails without farmers being asked for permission to cross their lands," says John Pierse from the South Kerry Development Partnership, who also attended the workshop.
"It's absolutely essential to talk to farmers and rural dwellers rather than tell them what you are doing," says Pierse, who praised Éamon Ó Cuív, the current Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, for listening to local people.
The recruitment of rural recreation officers to manage and promote 11 approved walking routes and a scheme to pay farmers to develop and maintain walking routes to an approved standard are among the recent initiatives announced by Ó Cuív.
Meanwhile, the National Trails Office at the National Sports Council is about to make an inventory of all walking routes in Ireland as a first step to increase sustainable trail-development.
According to Pierse, the key to developing outdoor recreational activities is to work on a county-by-county basis and involve all state and voluntary agencies in the process.
Another member of the South Kerry Development Partnership is farmer Donal Corkery, who also attended the workshop. Corkery is a farmer who offers paid access to over 525 hectares (1,300 acres) of land on the Beara Peninsula. "We developed all the routes ourselves. We've put in picnic areas, car parks and run a coffee shop at the farmhouse," he says of his award-winning project, Gleninchaquin Park (www.gleninchaquin.com).
Somewhat similarly, the walks on Sheep's Head Way between Bantry Bay and Dunmanus Bay were developed in co-operation with local farmers and the Rural Environment Protection Scheme.
Participants at the Glendalough workshop went on field trips to the Tinahely Railway Walk and the Glenmalure Access Route in Co Wicklow to see practical solutions for providing access to private land.
For instance, on the Tinahely Railway Walk, a route has been developed along a disused railway line where farmers have given written agreement to public access. A guide for community groups on how to develop new walking trails was launched at the official opening of the Tinahely Railway Walk in September.
An access point along another very popular walking route in Glenmalure, Co Wicklow, was also discussed in detail. On this walk, a section of the trail has been diverted away from a nearby privately-owned cottage (walkers previously walked through the yard of this property) and includes a wooden footbridge that has been constructed by the voluntary group, Mountain Meitheal (www.pathsavers.org). "Mountain Meitheal is essentially the Green Gym Irish-style. Their philosophy is sustainable trail-building and repair," says Helen Lawless, countryside recreation officer with the Wicklow Uplands Council.
Meanwhile, the farmers along that particular route have given a seven-year written agreement to public access. Significantly, Lawless says, "The agreement is for public access. It's not a right of way and if problems arise, they will be addressed. But ultimately, the farmer reserves the right to close access."
Lawless also mentions the importance of the relatively new Leave No Trace campaign (www.leavenotraceireland.org). "We need a wide public-information campaign so that people will protect, respect and enjoy the countryside. The Leave No Trace campaign promotes the responsible use of the outdoors and focuses the responsibility on each individual to think about their impact on the physical environment."
PAT DUNNE, A farmer in the Glenmalure area of Wicklow, says, "Dogs continue to be a problem for farmers. Most of the organised walking groups discourage dogs but casual walkers still let their dogs off leads and a lot of people don't understand the damage dogs can do, especially with sheep. Dogs sometimes frighten sheep who then fall into a hole. That sheep might not be found by the farmer and would die of hunger."
Padraig Casey works for the Ballyhoura Country project, which has developed a network of mountain bike and walking trails in the south-west of Ireland.
"A lot of issues get bogged down around the access problem, but there is plenty of land in public ownership which can be developed without people fighting about what's not available," he says.
Finally, the National Landscape Strategy was another issue that gained attention at the workshop. "This is now part of the Programme for Government, but the Wicklow Uplands Council hasn't yet found a way to get into this issue," says Colin Murphy.
"Farmers here are indicating a reluctance to get involved in another top-down government-led initiative which will result in more restriction and classification. We're searching for a way to join their concerns and offer a local response to the National Landscape Strategy but we haven't found it yet."