'Illegal' bike trails dismantled amid safety fears

Mountain bike enthusiasts have expressed their dismay after Forestry England began dismantling "illegal" trails in woods in Dorset.

A number of popular trails, featuring jumps and drops, have been built in Puddletown Forest, all without permission.

Forestry England said it acted after "bigger features" began appearing, which were "not safe" and "unacceptable".

But riders criticised the move, saying the new trails were the most "predictable and safe" in the woods.

Forestry England leases Puddletown Forest for growing timber, and access is restricted to public rights of way.

However, there are more than 20 unauthorised trails in the woods and riders say trail building has been going on there for decades.

Rider John Calcinotto, who runs Bicycle Repair Man Bournemouth, said the quality of the newest trail was "mind blowing".

He said: "I appreciate the fact that it's private land but I cannot see any of it was unsafe.

"There are some large gaps that are naturally there that people are riding, but they are more dangerous than the gap jumps that have been built and are really smooth."

A Forestry England spokesperson said: "Many of Forestry England's team are riders themselves and appreciate that the unauthorised bike trails at Puddletown Forest are much loved by many, however, the potential risks of the large features can't be ignored.

"These big features are being removed because they're not safe and have been constructed without consideration of the health and safety impact, as well as the environmental impact – many of the trails are in breach of legislation for protected species and archaeology that's here."

On its website, Forestry England describes the trails as "illegal" and urges trail builders to get in touch in confidence "to see if we can somehow work together".

Work to remove the largest trail features started on 27 January and is expected to take about two weeks.

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