Right To Roam: Wild Camping In Dartmoor

We love wild camping. Nothing quite comes close to the freedom and sense of exploration that it gives. In the UK, the right to wild camp - and the freedom to roam in general - are incredibly dependent on location. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 established a legal right to wild camp anywhere in Scotland, but in England and Wales, there is no right without the express permission of the landowner. Dartmoor was an exception to this with a de facto right to camp. However, in January 2023, everything changed.

The morning of 21 January 2023 was cold and bright. The low sun picking out the craggy features of Dartmoor in sharp highlights and crisp shadows. It was perfect weather for a winter’s walk. But the people gathering just before lunchtime in the picturesque village of Cornwood, on the southern edge of the Dartmoor National Park, had more than walking on their minds.

The classic countryside walk plays an outsized role in the English psyche, having helped shape our culture through the Brontës, via Wordsworth’s daffodils and beyond, for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. At the same time, England has some of the most restrictive public access laws anywhere in northern Europe.

In places like Scotland, Switzerland, the Baltics and Scandinavia, the public has a legal right to access most wilderness areas for responsible recreation, no matter who owns the land. By contrast, only eight per cent of England is covered by similar guarantees. Much of this, as the Right to Roam Campaign points out, is located miles from major population centres, making it difficult to reach. Even where access is guaranteed, the recreational activities permitted are often limited to walking, running or horse riding. There’s no right to cycle, paddle, canoe or swim in waterways.

Many of the laws around land rights are antiquated, dating back to 1066 and the reign of William the Conqueror. After mass trespass protests in the 1930s, the British government created its first National Parks in the postwar period. But 90 per cent of the land which makes up England’s National Parks, for example, is still privately owned. In many cases, neither the 1990 Rights of Way Act, which protects public footpaths, nor the Countryside & Rights of Way Act of 2000 could prevent a landlord from denying people entry.

Access to the outdoors is more than just a “nice to have”. Research has repeatedly shown that spending time outside in nature has a huge effect on human health. In 2019, a study of 20,000 people published by researchers from the University of Exeter Medical School showed that “the likelihood of reporting good health or high wellbeing became significantly greater” among those who spent two hours or more in nature each week.

On Dartmoor, Gillian Healey, a professional guide who regularly takes groups of school kids wild camping, sees this effect firsthand. “A lot of these young people have not been given the opportunity to experience anything like that before,” she says, “and you can really see their mindset changing. It’s incredible to see the way they work with each other, and the resilience they build up.”

The Supreme Court has backed the right to wild camp on Dartmoor. Judges unanimously rejected the appeal by the landowners Alexander and Diana Darwal. Stating references to open-air recreation in the Dartmoor by-law "naturally includes camping".

To find out how you can lend support to the campaign, go to righttoroam.org.uk