Can you ride down canal towing paths?

[Rokx]

Question in the title really... Just down the road from where I live is the Oxford Canal, it's marked on my map as a "National Trail/Long Distance Route; Recreational Route". Am I allowed to ride there?

[Dees-unpaidgroom]

We have a canal by us and we're not allowed to ride on it. But it might be diffrent in your area-sorry not alot of help am I!

[Wally]

WHAT!!!!!!!! no horses on the tow path??? what bright spark thought that one up. It was built for horses.

Right, bloody minded so and so that I am- I'm off to get a horse drawn narrow boat. OH used to be big in canals, he was on the canal preservation trust, he can steer and I'll ride the horse down the tow path.

let me at 'em

[Millies Mum]

i know you are not allowed to ride a bicycle down a tow path,,, ( i do tho ) but surely they were built for horses,,, get hold of the british waterways board, i know they are very strict,,, but he he they have to catch you first,,,,,:D:D

[Wally]

Back in the day a passenger narrow boat would be started off by three horses, line astern, and they would take them off one by one as they got the speed to a fast canter, then a little boy would ride the horse at a fast canter down the towpath and get the boat up on to the bow wave where it would ride ( the speed limit is 4mph now) it was the fastest form of passenger transprt, faster than the stage coach and cheap as one horse could keep the boat going for miles.

They would have a sickle on the front of this express boat and they would cut the tow lines of slower moving vessels.

There how about that for your bit of useless information of the day.

A good narrow boat horse was worth his weight as the skill in getting a boat moving was very different to getting a cart rolling. Carriage horses would often jib and not go forwards, it needed a long, slow steady lean into the collar to get the boat moving.

You can still see the deep gouges in the sides of stone bridges where the tow lines have run. And some metal brides have a gap down the middle to allow the tow rope to pass through.

[joey_olop]

We went on holiday to North Wales last year & went on a horse-drawn boat. There were people riding on the tow path-I think the town was called Llangollen???
Im sure riding on a tow path isnt illegal-considering it was horses they were built for in the first place!
I dont think I could trust my 2 riding down a canal path incase they spooked at something-would get a nice good dunking :D :D

[learningcurve]

You can't ride on tow paths in our area they have been turned into cycle tracks.

[HJ&Katie]

You can't ride on tow paths in our area they have been turned into cycle tracks.

Surely most of the national cycle route uses Bridle paths as foot path are for pedestrians only.

[summercandy]

how strange seeing this question on here.This subject came up at our yard recently and I am sure I recall reading somewhere that if a canal still had a path running alongside it which had been used for horses in the past as a towpath then you could still legally ride it. Unfortunately none of us have been able to find out if this is true or not so if you do discover the answer please let me know.

[Roofio]

You'll need to give British Waterways a call as it depends on the particular canal. You'll also need to bear in mind whether you can get under/over some of the bridges ;)

[Hippyhorse]

Ohh I am very interested in this as we live right by a canal(and near dozens!) and there is a council owned bit of grazing land right by it too and I did always wonder where you could ride ifyou kept your horse there. They do have a horse drawn narrowboat down there when the canalboat festival is on so I wonder if it is allowed, although there are lots of barrier things that I used to struggle to get my pushchair round so it might be a tad difficult

[FeatheryFeet]

...

[Wally]

This makes me so mad, a path that was built for horses is now been lost to horses. If I had a horse drwan narrow boat I'd be spitting.

[Rokx]

Yeah, I thought you should be able to ride down them, but someone said they thought they were only for pedestrians/cyclists now!
I've emailed British Waterways, so will let you know what they say (if they reply!).
xx

[Brychen]

I (to be awkward) can see why some one wouldnt want riders to use tow paths canal horses moved at a walk, unmounted in a steady line. Cannal paths are used now a lot as recreational long distance walks. As a walker with my small child I wouldnt want to meet a rider coming at speed down a tow path!

I as a rider wouldnt want to ride down a lot of tow paths as they are narrow , often rough surfaces and if your horse spooks - splosh!

Having said that there are some tow paths that are designated bridle ways (check your os map) and some that are permissive bridleways. If its worth using it may also be worth trying the waterway authority and see if you can get it redesignated.

[gb050573]

I see your point Brychen, but we should all be able to use these walkways. I live near a disused railway line that goes by the water of leith and it is a lovely hack. It is frequented by cyclists, walkers (with a without dogs) and we all manage to use it without bothering each other.

[Rokx]

The canals here all cross fields, so it shouldnt be a problem to have horses and walkers etc, I wouldnt want to ride down them anyway if they were very narrow!

ETA: Just got a reply!

"Hello _______
I am sorry but horses are not permitted along any of our towpaths.
Kind Regards
_____________"

:mad:

[Wally]

The rat bags

Right I am going to , one day when I've got time and I am not busy, going to investigate a horse drawn narrow boat.

[summercandy]

aww that is such a shame.In our case we have a bridleways person looking into it as our canal has a bridleway alongside going in one direction but towards the other direction there is a footpath and further along more bridleway but for some reason there is a stretch that we can't use which according to old maps used to be a bridleway.

[Tazanne]

...

[Wally]

http://www.horsedrawnboats.co.uk/horse-drawn-boats.asp

There you go , an 'oss on the tow path, and jolly nice it looks too.

[gb050573]

In all seriousness, I think it is absolutely outrageous that they have replied in that manner. Do you have a BHS representative in your area that you could contact relating to access? I would get straight onto them.

The areas that are available for off-road riding in some parts of this country are limited enough. I know if they prevented us riding along the water of leith there would be an outcry here and I doubt they would be able to get away with it.

As long as people are sensible and don't canter of gallop along them recklessly without regard to others there should be no problem with them being used for riding.

[old_woman]

The problem is that canal towpaths AREN'T public paths as some posters seem to think - they are privately owned by (usually) British Waterways, sometimes by other canal companies, who have every right to dictate who they do and don't allow to use them ...

There are a few - very few - exceptions, where a canal towpath is ALSO a public footpath, bridleway or byway.

The law of access and rights-of-way in Scotland is totally different to that in England.

[Wally]

No canals here!

[Denbenj]

we used to ride down ours, however it was quite hairraising at times, some were in slight disrepair with dodgy banks!

the biggest hurdle we found were getting past the grumpy fisherman who hogged all the paths.. they would curse us..tut..winge... complain...

As wally says.. excuse me WHO were the paths originally made for!!

:rolleyes:

[old_woman]

As wally says.. excuse me WHO were the paths originally made for!!

:rolleyes:

For horses in draught, NOT for ridden horses. As you can see on several websites, horse-drawn boats are not a problem. However, the boat itself will need to have a licence purchased for it, and mooring fees will be payable. In any case, towpaths have never been public paths in the commonly-understood sense of the word. As a child in the 1940s and 50s I remember all the canal towpaths in the area where I was brought up being locked or barred closed on New Year's Day, with legal notices pinned up at every entrance point.

I used to ride for miles and miles along canal towpaths in the days of canal dereliction - the ponies used to have to wade and scramble where the towpaths were collapsed, and dash up and down the steep embankments when we were accosted by the very few BW employees. There was an old lady living in a cottage by the locks; we called her Jinny Greenteeth. She would dash out of her cottage and try to stop cyclists and horseriders!

I agree that it would be wonderful to still be able to ride along the towpaths, but certainly where I was brought up, the towpaths are nowadays much too narrow and busy to be safe or comfortable for riders to share with walkers, cyclists and fishermen - back in the 40s, 50s and 60s hardly anyone used them. In addition, riders were hardly pro-active in the waterways rescue and conservation movement ... if we had been, perhaps we might have had some say in the new use of towpaths.

[horses4eva888]

I'd be too scared to ride along a canal, what if the horse spooked sideways and fell in, there's no easy way out! (Just something that's always worried me about that!)

Someone put my fears to rest? Or am I right to be worried?

[Ryder]

The canals were designed for oneway walking with horses, & there certainly isn't room for two to pass on most canals round here. Also, it's a 4' drop if you fall in & would need emergency aid to get most horses out. Plus horses make a horrible mess on wet ground & it would ruin it for all other users. Plus there are sometimes very aggressive swans guarding some areas. I'm a rider & dogwalker & I quite understand why riders are not generally wanted on the canalsides, though they are lovely places!

[Millies Mum]

Hi Tazanne,,,,
we go on holiday to Stone in our caravan,,,,, thats where we ride our bikes on the canal,,,,,
this is one of the places where you could ride a horse if you were allowed as there is room between the bridges,,,,
wish we had canals in cornwall,,, altho may be not if you can,t ride on them,,,,
:mad::mad::mad:

[Sleepybear]

ETA: Just got a reply!

"Hello _______
I am sorry but horses are not permitted along any of our towpaths.
Kind Regards
_____________"

:mad:

This makes me sooooo mad, these paths were built for horses in the first place!!! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr :mad::mad::mad:

I've ridden by canals, don't know if you were allowed to or not on these particular ones but there were no signs stopping me and I assumed that as the tow paths were built purposely for horses originally there would be no problem. I'm amazed that the waterways authorities are being funny. If you ride sensibly with regard to others and stick to the paths what is the problem??? Bloody beaurocrats!!! Grrrrrrrrrrrr:mad::mad::mad:

Wally my friend has an old barge wonder if she would lend it to us to make a stand against these beaurocrats???? ha ha

[Rarah]

It's not allowed on our stretch of the Leeds / Liverpool canal.

We did attempt to ride it one day anyway. Most people were pleased to see us but there was too much going on, walkers, cyclists, a rail line running alongside with noisy trains, horses grazing in adjoining fields going nuts because they're not used to seeing riders, swans, barges with stuff flapping, narrow paths and of course the obvious risk of landing in the drink should your horse spook!!! I have the most bomb proof horse I know and even she was a little on her toes by the time we'd done a few miles.

I don't think I will be attempting to hack there again any time soon ;)

Shame though. I thought that horses would be allowed - never crossed my mind that we wouldn't be permitted (hence the sneeky hack - well - once we'd done about 7 miles to get there it would be a shame not to!).

[Tazanne]

...

[Shannon_Clover]

When I was teen at boarding school I used to go a riding school near the canal and we used to go trek on it esp loved cantering, it was thrilling, water beside you.
But then it stopped i suppose for safety reasons.

Now I wouldnt ride on a canal path, cos it just scary, what if ye fell in how get off if spook, overtake etc..
If was potected with railing it b ok but thats impossible to happen.

[old_woman]

Although a minority of the mileage of towpaths could conceivably be opened for horseriders, most of the mileage is neither safe nor suitable, however lovely it may appear to be early on a winter morning.

This makes me sooooo mad, these paths were built for horses in the first place!!! Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr :mad::mad::mad:

Indeed they were. For horses plodding along at the walk, pulling a barge, not for ridden horses OR for public use. Much of the towpath mileage throughout the country does not even carry the status of public footpath, still less that of bridleway or byway. It is only by courtesy of British Waterways that walkers and cyclists are permitted to access the towpaths.

I assumed that as the tow paths were built purposely for horses originally there would be no problem. I'm amazed that the waterways authorities are being funny.

Racecourses were built for horses originally weren't they? Are racecourse authorities being 'funny' when they prohibit you from riding casually around?

If you ride sensibly with regard to others and stick to the paths what is the problem??? Bloody beaurocrats!!! Grrrrrrrrrrrr:mad::mad::mad:

One problem is that most of the towpaths are simply not wide enough for safe and comfortable use by such a combination of users as walkers, cyclists, horseriders and fishermen. Another problem is present-day safety regulations. it would be prohibitively expensive - not to say damaging to the fabric and history of the canal - to make the towpath acceptably safe for ridden horses, were they to suddenly be permitted on the towpath.


Wally my friend has an old barge wonder if she would lend it to us to make a stand against these beaurocrats???? ha ha

You wouldn't be 'making a stand'. There is a flourishing horse-boating society and British Waterways has no problem with horsedrawn boats where the access is safe for horses.

The crux of the matter is that towpaths are private land, and the landowner can dictate their own terms as to who uses them, however 'funny' that may seem. British Waterways is not part of the government or the local council; it is the successor to the many different canal companies which built and operated the canals in their commercial heyday, and is still governed by many of the original Canal Enabling Acts drawn up in the 1700s and 1800s some of which may even prohibit the use of horses other than working canal horses.

British Waterways isn't necessarily being awkward, obstructive or 'funny', but they do have a very difficult job to do caring for thousands of miles of historic waterways and balancing the needs and desires of users and would-be users with maintenance and safety. Yes, towpaths were originally built for horses. For draught horses at the walk. You could say that canals were originally built for boats, so why can't I take my speedboat along it ...? But of course I can't ... and it would be ridiculous to expect to be able to do so.

It sounds as if I don't want to ride along towpaths. As a child and a teenager I rode for miles along towpaths. This was when the canals were largely derelict, locks blocked, infilled and non-functioning and only a very occasional, very intrepid boater or fisherman was to be seen. I would LOVE to ride miles across country via towpaths once more. But on most of the mileage of towpaths, this is simply not appropriate nowadays, and unfortunately we have to accept this.

If there is a suitable (ie wide enough) length of towpath near you that would enable you to avoid some dangerous roadwork, why not look into permissive access organised via a bridleways association?