[Travel] Public Footpath Map

[The Lemming Stomper]

I hope you are all well surviving in these strange times.

One of few the nice things that has come from being in lockdown has been that my family and I have been able to discover some lovely walks that we did not know were accessible from our doorstep. I found these routes through public footpaths map website https://footpathmap.co.uk/ We have a dog so we did know lots of walks around our area but had no idea quite how many more we had not discovered.

I was quite upset that we'd not see the bluebells this year but the maps helped us fond some woods near us that I didn't even know where accessible from our door step.

There is a paid version of the site and an app but I have just used the free one so far and that seems to do the job.

You can zoom into your area and discover all the public footpaths, byways and bridleways in their area. I have discovered lots of lovely new walks and bike rides the family can do where we can responsibly socially distance from others while enjoying the fresh air.


As we are all in “lockdown” and only allowed out once a day for exercise it is extremely important for our mental health to get out and get a change of environment. I hope that this website can help you find some new ways of doing just that as well as keeping fit in these trying times.

Please remember to keep your distance when out and about, 2 meters minimum!

I hope this help some people.

https://footpathmap.co.uk/

Thanks so much OP for posting the map...

Did half way to Woodingdean from Saltdean and back using the bridleway from Westmeston Ave...

Only an hours worth incase the Chicken Police are checking up.

 

[Bodian]

That job sounds brilliant! Keep up the good work and thanks for the tips.

Just at the moment though we are either responding to complaints from landowners / homeowners / farmers that we are not closing the paths through their land - or, we are responding to the public complaints about gates and stiles blocked by the above, or signs saying 'path closed'. A no-win situation really!!

 

[Alba Badger]

Thanks so much OP for posting the map...

Did half way to Woodingdean from Saltdean and back using the bridleway from Westmeston Ave...

Only an hours worth incase the Chicken Police are checking up.

The whole only being able to do 1 hour thing has never been clarified has it?

 

[The Lemming Stomper]

The whole only being able to do 1 hour thing has never been clarified has it?

That's a good point....

There and back next time then...

Cheers again

 

[stingray]

[emoji23][emoji23][emoji23][emoji23]Make sure your out Thursday too clapping....

ah the keyboard policeman who doesn't know his your from you're

 

[Chicken Run]

ah the keyboard policeman who doesn't know his your from you're

Stay at home, protect the NHS & save lives.

Oh and when you start a sentence you must use a capital letter. [emoji106]

 

[loz]

Stay at home, protect the NHS & save lives.

Oh and when you start a sentence you must use a capital letter. [emoji106]

I have to say that the 1 walk a day to save lives in congested cities and towns is just to help not having too many people around and makes sense. I luckily live in a village and if I was not at work could walk 10 different routs a day without seeing a single person, I cant frankly see how that is not saving life's . ( unfortunately for my dog and my heath I am working so cant )

 

[Chicken Run]

I have to say that the 1 walk a day to save lives in congested cities and towns is just to help not having too many people around and makes sense. I luckily live in a village and if I was not at work could walk 10 different routs a day without seeing a single person, I cant frankly see how that is not saving life's . ( unfortunately for my dog and my heath I am working so cant )

I’m only bantering these, (since Covid 19) exercise newbies, I genuinely couldn’t give less of a shit about people going out for a walk [emoji23]

 

[Fungus]

The BBC has reported police clarification of what is reasonable, including exercise:

On exercise, the guidance lists driving to the countryside for a walk as "reasonable" if "far more time" is spent walking than driving.
But it adds that driving for a "prolonged period with only brief exercise" is not reasonable.
That would appear to indicate that someone who drove for an hour to a beauty spot for a walk would not be contravening the rules.
Under the guidance, police are advised not to intervene if people stop to rest or eat lunch while on a long walk, but short walks to sit on a park bench are not allowed.
"A very short period of 'exercise' to excuse a long period of inactivity may mean that the person is not engaged in 'exercise' but in fact something else," the guidance says.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-52312560

 

[Cheshire Cat]

There were queues to get onto footpaths by me yesterday.

 

[Arthritic Toe]

Being a Public Rights of Way Officer, I'm ashamed that I didn't know about that first link. Pretty good stuff - what it is is data downloaded from a national site in progress, which are all the digitised 'Definitive Map of Public Rights of Way' (one for each county / unitary authority). Just be aware that some of them are a few years out of date, and don't show recent changes. I have just checked my local one, and it hasn't got some alterations from 10 years ago - so it looks as though they downloaded a dataset then, and haven't updated them.

(Although from a professional's point of view, it's irritating they've used the 'wrong' colours - whereas ESCC have the 'correct' legal colours (the ones we have to use on the Definitive Map))

But to be honest, to navigate properly, you can't do better than a proper Ordnance Survey map - and for a local area you can view them on bing maps https://www.bing.com/maps - choose OS in top right, and zoom into the 1:25,000 scale. They tend to show changes within a year or two of them happening on the ground. But I don't think you can use these on your mobile.

The rowmaps one isn't great, as many authorities didn't supply them with data.

I had no idea you could access the os maps on bing maps. Thanks for that. I love the os maps.