Hundreds of campaigners supporting the right to wild camp on Dartmoor gathered on one of the tors ahead of a landmark court case on the issue.
More than 450 gathered on Hound Tor yesterday (Sunday) in the rain in a rally to underline their support for the Supreme Court hearing tomorrow (Tuesday) which will decide whether walkers have the right to wild camp (backpack camp) overnight on Dartmoor.
A long-running legal argument has previously ruled in favour of campaigners who want the freedom to camp and walk on the national park. However, this decision is now being appealed in the court this week and will be the final binding ruling. Judges have so far swung both ways in their decisions between the rights of landowners and campaigners such as Right to Roam and the Stars Are For Everyone. Landowners have said that campers do not always look after their land and they are seeking further protection for the fragile landscape through the legal challenge.
In January 2023 Dartmoor landowner Alexander Darwall won a High Court case against Dartmoor National Park Authority (DNPA), removing the public’s right to wild camp. This sparked a protest of 3,500 people on his land at Stall Moor near Ivybridge, leading the national park authority to appeal. The High Court later ruled in favour of allowing wild camping to continue on Dartmoor.
The latest appeal hearing is a result of landowner Alexander Darwall challenging the decision to allow backpack camping on Dartmoor, the only place in England where this has been allowed.
Dartmoor Preservation Association (DPA) is managing the funding of the legal cases and has organised a public appeal which has been successful.
DPA chief executive Tom Usher said: “There rally was a great success. It was important to give people in Devon and local to Dartmoor the opportunity to come together on the moor itself. Many will not have the resources or time to be in London at the Supreme Court.
“Despite the heavy rain, 450 people turned out to send support, good wishes and a clear message that this right is important and well-used.
“The thing the rally at Hound Tor underlines for me (again) is that the vast majority of people who use Dartmoor for many things do so respectfully, gently and with consideration for one another.
“Wild campers are particularly focused on a ‘leave-no-trace’ approach to Dartmoor. The youth among them are the future leaders of environmentalism and conservation in the UK.
“A lot is riding on the Supreme Court result, the Dartmoor Preservation Association are committed to supporting Dartmoor National Park to keep Dartmoor wild and free.”
Ruth Webb, for The Stars Are For Everyone, said: “We gathered at Hound Tor to raise our voices in support of Dartmoor National Park Authority – to send a clear message that the right to wild camp is loved by many. To lose it would be a tragedy felt for generations to come”.
Lewis Winks, of Right to Roam, said: ““Wild camping is a right cherished by many – providing much needed opportunities for people to get out into nature, sleep under the stars and have experiences which transform lives. It’s incredible that we should have to fight to defend this tiny fraction of England where such a right exists, when we should instead be having conversations about how to open up more opportunities for people to get into the countryside.”
