In a similar vein, I'd also recommend 'Granite and Grit' by Ronald Turnbull, which gives a good general overview of the geology of all of the upland areas of the UK (including the Dales).

I really like the 'Rock Trails' series from Pesda Press (https://www.pesdapress.com/index.php/product-category/land/guidebooks/). They're aimed at hillwalkers rather than cavers, but offer a great introduction for the lay reader.  The first half of the book gives and overview of the geology and...

Indeed, and to be fair to the NT, it may be that their hands are tied in this case. I know the NT warden for Upper Wharfedale slightly and I understand from him that it took them many years to be able to open up Redmire Woods to public access because they acquired the land with a sitting tenant...

If you haven't already, would you mind reporting this to Eden District Council (https://www.eden.gov.uk/your-environment/street-care-and-cleaning/fly-tipping/) please? At least then it should get cleared up and may even be monitored more closely in future.

That hasn't been the case since the passage of the Welsh Language Act 1967.

Very unlikely, I would have thought. World Heritage status is not an endorsement of any aspect of the site's past, as evidenced by the fact that Auschwitz Birkenau is included in the list.

Thanks for sharing. Such a fascinating location. The fact that you can only get there by being rowed across the river adds to the enjoyment of a visit!

Probably going off topic a bit here, but your experience reminded me very much of the way people have often described supposed encounters with the grey man of Ben Macdui (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Am_Fear_Liath_M%C3%B2r)

Well I didn't see the piece in question, and by your own admission, you can't remember the exact words, but the Trust's website makes it very clear that it is the destruction of ancient woodland that it is opposed to, rather than HS2 per se...

Do you have any specific examples?

Do you have any evidence that 'most lay-people think that ancient woodland has been in existence since the ice age'?  That's certainly not what the word 'ancient' means.  The Oxford online dictionary gives two definitions, one of which is 'very old; having existed for a very long time,' which...

Not true actually, as revealed by the Guardian last week: https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2021/feb/07/revealed-queen-lobbied-for-change-in-law-to-hide-her-private-wealth

That's a very charitable interpretation of the Government's actions.  It seems more likely to me that the 'rules' are deliberately vague / confusing / contradictory so that the Government can blame the 'proles' for the disastrous situation we find ourselves in, rather than itself.  After all...

That's true, but then it was also true of most of rural England (indeed, in many cases, still is).

I suspect this is the explanation in areas like the Highlands, for example, but you also find very few rights of way in areas like the Central Belt, which is as densely populated, and similar in terrain to many parts of northern England.  And of course Ireland was very heavily populated until...

That reminds me of something that's always puzzled me - as almost all rights of way have come about simply because they were the routes that people used to get about, most people having no means of transport other than by foot until comparatively recently, why are there so few of them in...

* Does it not also say that travel "only if necessary to access a green/open space"? We're now at the point where it's not about transmission. It's about damage limitation. Hospital and attendant services are right on the limit in many cases. And for all the guff people spout about being...

That's true up to a point e.g. if the legislation stated that it was permitted to drive a 'reasonable' distance, the courts could use the guidance to determine the precise definition of 'reasonable.'  However, the legislation is completely silent on the matter of travel.  It simply states that...

I'm not sure that having a barbecue would fall under the definition of 'responsible' access - it certainly wouldn't under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. And the fact that this kind of behaviour happens anyway would seem to suggest that those who do it don't care whether or not they can do it...

Why is it 'utterly idiotic'? The right to roam in Scotland gives a right of responsible access to almost all land and water and works very well. The key word here is 'responsible' (the Scottish Outdoor Access code gives a very comprehensive explanation as to what exactly constitutes responsible...