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22-485: Forbidden Drive runs the length of the valley, a car-free gravel road popular for walking, running, cycling, and horseback riding. Side trails lead from Forbidden Drive up to rugged bridle paths suitable for hiking and trail riding . The park contains about 50 miles (80 km) of trails in total. The area was considered part of Fairmount Park from 1867 until the merger of the Fairmount Park Commission and

44-576: A 1,250-acre (5.1 km) area of the park known as the Wissahickon Valley was designated a National Natural Landmark . Forbidden Drive, formerly known as the Wissahickon Turnpike, is a wide rocky trail running through the Wissahickon Valley from Ten Box to Cedars House at the upper end of the Park. It is called Forbidden Drive because of a successful protest against cars being allowed to drive in

66-625: A right to be on land for recreational, educational and certain other purposes and a right to cross land. Access rights apply to any non-motorised activities, including horse-riding but only if they are exercised responsibly, as specified in the Scottish Outdoor Access Code . However, there is a lack of legally asserted public rights of way in Scotland, particularly for horse riding and cycling. Rights of way in Scotland mostly provide access for walkers, and only rarely for horse riders. In

88-640: A total length of over 25,000 miles in England and Wales. A number of long-distance multi-use trails have been created in England, including three National Trails : the Pennine Bridleway , 192 km (119 miles), The Ridgeway , 139 km (86 miles), and South Downs Way , 160 km (99 miles). The British Horse Society has promoted long-distance routes for horse riders known as bridleroutes , incorporating bridleways, byways and minor roads. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 specifically establishes

110-537: Is a trail or a thoroughfare that is used by people riding on horses . Trails originally created for use by horses often now serve a wider range of users, including equestrians , hikers , and cyclists . Such paths are either impassable for motorized vehicles, or vehicles are banned. The laws relating to allowable uses vary from country to country. In industrialized countries, bridle paths are now primarily used for recreation. However, they are still important transportation routes in other areas. For example, they are

132-590: Is an act of Parliament in the United Kingdom which enlarged the conservation and recreation functions of the existing National Parks Commission and re-named it the Countryside Commission . It provided for the establishment of country parks and gave local authorities certain powers in respect of the management of common land and of the provision of camping and picnicking sites and provided for grants to such bodies for their establishment. It provided for

154-522: Is generally left to the discretion of the landowner, subject to the general trespass laws of each of the 50 states. The longest bridle trail in Australia is the Bicentennial National Trail , of 5,330 kilometres length, running from Cooktown , Queensland, to Healesville , Victoria. There are also some historic bridle trails, now not commonly used by horse traffic, such as The Bridle Track ,

176-546: Is used colloquially for trails or paths used primarily for people making day treks on horses, and usually used only on the East Coast, whereas out West the equivalent term is trail . The term bridleway is rarely used in the U.S. Horses are usually presumed allowed to use trails in America unless specifically banned, although rules differ among locations. In some countries long-distance multi-use trails have been created, including

198-414: The Bicentennial National Trail in Australia, one of the longest marked multi-use trails in the world, stretching 5,330 kilometres. Rail trails can often be used by equestrians. In England and Wales a bridleway is "a way over which the public has a right of way on foot and a right of way on horseback or leading a horse, with or without a right to drive animals along the way." Although Section 30 of

220-506: The Countryside Act 1968 permits the riding of bicycles on public bridleways, the act says that it "shall not create any obligation to facilitate the use of the bridleway by cyclists". Thus the right to cycle exists even though it may be difficult to exercise on occasion, especially in winter. Cyclists using a bridleway are obliged to give way to other users on foot or horseback pursuant to the Countryside Act 1968 . In London's Hyde Park

242-700: The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 and made other amendments to the 1949 Act. It conferred upon water undertakers and the Forestry Commission powers to provide for public access and enjoyment in and around reservoirs and forests, and amended aspects of the Forestry Act 1967 , including provision for compensation in respect of the making of tree preservation orders . The Act gave powers and duties to highway authorities in respect of

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264-810: The Netherlands a bridleway ( ruiterpad ) is a special sand path for equestrians, largely free from other traffic, so that a rider does not inconvenience other users and vice versa. They are indicated with a sign and are both narrow and wide. Traffic is sometimes permitted on wide paths. It is possible to ride some sections of the Trans Canada Trail , especially in Quebec The United States has few if any formal designations for bridle paths, though horses are generally allowed on most state and federal trails, roads and public routes except where specifically restricted. Often, horses under saddle are subject to

286-552: The Six Foot Track , and The Corn Trail . Rail trails /paths are shared-use paths that make use of abandoned railway corridors. They can be used for walking, cycling, and often horse riding as well. The following description comes from Australia , but is applicable equally to other rail trails that exist throughout the world. Most trails have a gravel or dirt surface suitable for walking, mountain bikes and horses. Countryside Act 1968 The Countryside Act 1968 (c. 41)

308-599: The Act The Countryside in 1970 conferences held in 1963 and 1965 led to the publication in 1966 of a Government white paper called Leisure in the Countryside which proposed inter alia , the creation of country parks near to centres of population so as to ease pressures on wilder areas. The next year the publication of the report of the Gosling Committee recommended a suite of proposals concerning access to

330-730: The Department of Recreation in 2010. Today, Wissahickon Valley Park is a unit of Philadelphia Parks & Recreation and remains the second-largest park in Philadelphia after Fairmount. While logging and industrialization occurred in some parts of the valley in the late 18th and early 19th century, the gorge itself was known for its natural environment, inspiring religious mystics like Johannes Kelpius , writers like Edgar Allan Poe , John Greenleaf Whittier , George Lippard , and William Cobbett ; and artists like Thomas Moran , James Peale , William Trost Richards , and Currier and Ives . In 1964,

352-616: The Wissahickon Creek ) and New York City 's Central Park Some trails managed by the U. S. Forest Service and other governmental entities may restrict access of horses, or restrict access during certain times of the year. For example, horses are allowed on the American Discovery Trail , which crosses the country, but only on specific sections of the Appalachian Trail . Access to trails and pathways on private land

374-413: The employment of countryside wardens and for the making of byelaws in connection with such facilities. The Act conferred powers on certain authorities to exercise control over boating on waterbodies within national parks and over the conversion of moorland and heathland to agriculture. It put in place provisions regarding ‘ areas of special scientific value ’ and access to ‘open country’ as defined in

396-509: The main method of traveling to mountain villages in Lesotho . In England and Wales a bridle path now refers to a route which can be legally used by horse riders in addition to walkers, and since 1968, by cyclists. A "ride" is another term used for a bridleway: "a path or track, esp. one through a wood, usually made for riding on horseback" ( Oxford English Dictionary ). In the US, the term bridle path

418-544: The park. In 1920, the Park Commission wanted to allow cars in the park, but 1,000 protesters on horseback and 12,000 spectators on foot fought against cars on the Wissahickon Turnpike. Every year, the Wissahickon Day Parade is held to celebrate the anniversary of this protest. Bridle paths A bridle path , also bridleway , equestrian trail , horse riding path , ride , bridle road , or horse trail ,

440-503: The same regulations as pedestrians or hikers where those requirements differ from those for cyclists. In most states, horses are classified as livestock and thus restricted from areas such as the right of way of the interstate highway system , though generally permitted to travel along the side of other roadways, especially in rural areas. Urban bridle paths exist in Philadelphia 's Fairmount Park (most notably Forbidden Drive along

462-579: The sand-covered avenue of Rotten Row is maintained as a bridleway and forms part of Hyde Park's South Ride. It is convenient for the Household Cavalry, stabled nearby at Hyde Park Barracks in Knightsbridge, to exercise their horses. Although bridleways are shown on Ordnance Survey maps, only the definitive map of the area (controlled by the county council) lists every legal bridle path. In total there are over 76,000 separate bridleway routes with

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484-413: The signing of public paths and in respect of the maintenance of stiles and gates on paths. It introduced provisions regarding the ploughing and reinstatement of public paths during agricultural operations and also provided for bicycles to use public bridleways. Further provision was made as regards traffic regulation orders in parts of the countryside. Certain other miscellaneous provisions were made by

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