Would you have right to roam on this track that go past the Monzie castle? Was out for a walk there today and ran into some lady who wasn't too pleased with people walking on the track, so was second guessing the right to roam here.

by DaneInScotland

11 comments

  1. The right to roam wouldn’t exactly be a right if it was only in certain permitted locations. It’s the right to RESPONSIBLE access. Roads, tracks, footpaths, open land, you have the right to enjoy it all with few exceptions.

    I sometimes have misinformed individuals tell me I’m not allowed to be somewhere (usually English people or foreigners who have bought land here). Don’t be a dick, but politely explain the law to them and continue as you were.

  2. Depends what was along the road, no? Did you see any heavy machinery and stuff? Was there gates(not that it mattered but the woman may have thought that means you can’t come in)? If it was simply just a path running through then I have absolutely no idea why the woman didn’t like it, maybe she thought it was her own private road to her house and nobody should be on it?

    Edit* just had a look at it on maps and cannot believe you cropped out “Shaggie Burn”!!! Anyway, I can’t see anything wrong with it on maps, looks like a straight forward open access road, I would’ve just told her if it was an issue to phone the police and they can find you somewhere on the path and then carried on.

  3. Truthfully – it depends. If it was a section of track that goes through the cultivated private gardens surrounding the castle (mowed lawn, flower beds and shrubs etc) then it would reasonably be considered part of the curtilage of the building (which is a private home) you would NOT be permitted to be there under the Right of Responsible access. If you were on a section of track running between fields and not immediately bounding the residential property then you would be permitted. There have been numerous court cases to decide the extent and nature of ‘curtilage’ (notably the Snowie and Gloag cases if you’re particularly interested. It’s not as simple as people think. In general terms if you think someone’s right to enjoy their own garden / home in privacy is being negatively impacted by you being there (and there’s no core path or other right of way) then quite possibly it’s not subject to the access requirements. The ‘right to roam’ as it’s incorrectly called has quite a few caveats and isn’t a blanket right like some people seem to think. Sincerely someone who wrote their post grad dissertation on the act and case law

  4. I cycled past the west entance last year which had a closed gate but saw people walking their dogs in the field, personally I would walk the route.

  6. If there were no signs indicating Private property and it seems like it is the only road to the castle – as long as you respected the route, didn’t leave any gates open etc then you would have the right to roam.

  7. Trespass isn’t even criminal here in the UK, “right to roam” notwithstanding, Police will not intervene in a trespass unless it becomes a *real* crime, which then enters into “Aggravated Trespass”.

    Either way, the lady OP dealt with pretty much has 0% LEGAL right to tell anybody to move. Even if it was her garden, good luck with the solicitors and paperwork taking up a civil case against a stranger who walked across your path for 5 seconds, lol!

  8. A lot of illegal raptor killing happens in this area. Some very dodgy landowners.

    If anyone comes up asking you to move on, film the interaction. Report anything suspicious to the police.

  9. Even if it does go through the grounds of the castle, if you’re just walking on the road and not nosing around peering in windows and stuff then I don’t think anyone can reasonably object.

    The fact that you’re even asking the question suggests you’re not the type to be blasting Now That’s What I Call Handbag Hardcore 72 from a shitty Bluetooth speaker and lobbing your empty Dragon Soop cans in the bushes, so I suspect you won’t have any problems.

    If someone asks you to leave, you can generally tell the difference between “OMG TRESPASSERS GET ORF MOI LAAAAAND” wankers and “You can’t walk down that bit, there’s a bull in the field and there’s timber harvesting, and you’ll get killed”, and make a suitable judgement yourself.

  11. Looking at Maps, it looks like the only area that is sensibly described as garden is a roughly 300m section in the middle where it looks like it’s mown on both sides.

    I can understand these folks not wanting you to walk through the middle section, but the areas of the road signposted as Private from either end up until that section look like you should have a right to responsibly access.

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