Vixen Tor

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In May 2003 it was announced that the owner of the land on which Vixen tor stands had closed all access to the famous landmark. Although for the past 30 years the land was held in private ownership there had always been an access agreement. The new owner, Mrs Alford, said there was no legal public right of access to the site and that she has been advised by her insurance company to close it as she could be liable if anyone injured themselves while walking or climbing. This very soon had various representative bodies such as The Ramblers Association and The British Mountaineering Council up in arms and various campaigns were launched.

Over the next two years various protests and 'mass trespasses' were organised to bring the issue to the media's attention. The first official protest was organised by the British Mountaineering Council and it took place on January 1st 2004 where a 'mass trespass' of 20 people took place.

In June 2004 a District Judge at Plymouth Magistrates' Court found that the landowner had failed to obtain a consent under the Regulations before engaging in scrub clearance and the application of fertiliser (calcified seaweed and farmyard manure) on four fields of unimproved grassland around Vixen Tor. The landowner was fined £1,000 and £5,000 costs. DEFRA will now move towards ensuring the reinstatement of this land. In May 2005 this then went to the High Court of Appeal where two senior judges overturned the ruling.

In January 2005 a public inquiry in fact found it to be farmland on the basis of the grass percentage of the total flora. The inspectors did note that it was a very close decision but it meant that as it was classed as farmland it came outside the open access land and was allowed to be closed. The Ramblers Association objected to the appeal by Mrs Mary Alford and her son Daniel and were joined by the Open Spaces Society, the Dartmoor Preservation Association, the British Mountaineering Council, and the Countryside Agency, which were responsible for mapping the land. But despite this finding it was decreed that the landowner still had the right to deny access to the tor.

Mrs Alford was also the subject of an assault in May 2005. A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police confirmed that officers were called to the tor and a result, a 24-year-old man from Tavistock received a caution for common assault when he had clashed with Mrs Alford, who fell off a wall during a demonstration against the inspector's decision

In September 2005 another 'mass trespass' of 80 walkers and climbers took place. Some of the latter climbed the tor and unfurled a banner which read, Vixen Tor for all to enjoy".  It was then alleged by members of the British Mountaineering Council that during a climb one of the ropes were cut and one man was assaulted. The police were called and it was requested that charges were brought, these were later dropped.

In January 2006 yet another 'mass trespass' was organised for New Year's day to continue the pressure for the land to be re-opened. This was none too successful as when the protesters arrived they found that the landowner was holding a clay pigeon shoot and barbeque and it was deemed too dangerous to proceed.

It then appears that Mrs Alford decided that for a one-off payment of £30,000, followed by an annual payment of £35,000 plus insurance and legal costs she would open the land under a ten year agreement. The Dartmoor National Park Authority had offered an annual payment of £1,500.

It is interesting to see how this magical figure of £35,000 is reached, the landowners in return for an access licence expect the National Park to pay:

1) An annual payment of £30,000 for public access, this figure was arrived at by the following calculation:

Average number of visits per week = 198.5

Average number of visits per day = 28.3

Total visits per year = 10,325

Value per visit = £3.00

Total visit value per year = £30,978.

2) An annual payment of £2,500 to compensate for the disruption to the landowners farming business?

3) An annual management fee of £2,500 to cover the costs of such management practices as clearing litter. This charge is slightly puzzling as in the proposed conditions of the access licence there is a clause which prohibits, "creating rubbish/litter...," so where is the litter going to come from?

4) A single payment of £30,000 to reimburse the land owner for cost incurred in connection with the previous public inquiry for the CROW act. Considering that the access agreement would be for 10 years this cost would equate to £3,000 per annum.

The actual total cost per annum (including the £3,000 for the single payment) actually would amount to £38,000 which brings the sum of the value per visit to £3.68 per head. To put this into a value for money perspective, one adult and a child could visit the nearby Dartmoor Prison Museum for £3.00 where there are numerous exhibits and items of interest not just a single tor. How long could you look at a tor or how long would it take to walk around a tor? Fair enough if you were rock climbing you would spent several hours on the tor in which case £3.68 does seem good value for money. Except there is a clause in the access agreement which states, "No damage to be done to the Tor ...," which would slightly curtail any climbing activities. Oh, and if you are walking your dog you will have to leave it at the gate as a further clause insists that, "animals are not permitted." Ok, in cash terms obviously nobody would pay out physically to get access to Vixen tor but in the long run the money comes from somewhere and one of those sources is the British taxpayer which I know is a dying breed but rumour has it there are still a few unfortunates left.

A meeting of the Dartmoor National Park Authority was held on March 3rd 2006 where it concluded that there were two options remaining for the way ahead:

"(i) to conclude that the gulf in aspiration is so great that 'meaningful progress' has not been made, agreement is unlikely, and there is no justification for further talks;

(ii) to make the owners a higher and final offer that is both affordable and value for money, and determine that if this offer is not accepted the situation at (i) above applies;

online source found at: 03 March 2006 Authority Meeting

Another mass protest was organised by the British Mountaineering Council on the 6th of May 2006 where around 50 people trespassed on the tor, once again there was no action taken.

And so the saga continues, it is at this point that one loses any sympathy with the landowner whatsoever, this is sheer greed and totally unfounded. Previously it could have been argued that there are numerous other tors to climb and miles and miles of alternative moorland to ramble over and every Englishman's home is his castle. But how on earth can anybody arrive at the sum of £3.68 to visit Vixen tor? I think if I was offered £1,500 to let people walk over my lawn I would be very tempted. This emotive subject strikes a different chord with a lot of people, personally I think it is a shame that people are denied access to a fine Bronze Age kistvaen that lies near the bottom of the tor. The last time I visited it was in danger of becoming an integral part of a log pile as can be seen below, naturally this picture was taken with a huge telephoto lens and I did not enter the 'forbidden zone':