Walking in the North Pennines. Paddy Dillon

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      Grouse shooting

      Red grouse are hardy, non-migrating birds that thrive on heather moorland. They are deemed to be unique to Britain but may be related to willow grouse across Scandinavia and Russia. These plump birds spend most of their time among the heather, where they are perfectly camouflaged, and many walkers have almost stepped on them before they break noisily from cover, calling ‘go-back, go-back, go-back’. They fly close to the ground, with rapid wing-beats, seldom covering any great distance before landing. While young chicks will eat insects, adult birds chew on young heather shoots and various berries.

      With so much of the high moorlands used for grouse shooting, it makes sense to be aware of this activity, and to be aware of how the moorlands are managed. The first thing to bear in mind is that extensive heather moorlands are not natural, but have to be created. Heather needs plenty of light and cannot compete with tall vegetation. It can tolerate wet ground, but cannot grow in waterlogged bogs. Moorlands may have drainage ditches cut across them to remove excess water, and they may be burnt on a rotation basis, between 1 October and 15 April. When moorland is burnt, heather seeds survive better than other species, and so the plant is quick to recover. However, even the heather itself needs to be burnt, since tall heather has limited food value to grouse, which prefer young heather shoots. Walkers, therefore, will find awkward drainage ditches, deep heather, short heather and scorched terrain. A project called Peatscapes aims to restore some areas of moorland to a natural state, including blocking drains and encouraging species diversification.

      Large populations of red grouse will naturally attract predators, including foxes, various rodents and birds of prey, and grouse can also suffer from a debilitating internal parasitic worm. While some predator species are protected, particularly birds of prey, others are not, and are liable to be trapped in an effort to ‘control’ them. Sometimes, over-zealous gamekeepers have been suspected of killing birds of prey. A particularly sensitive time is spring and early summer, when grouse lay their eggs and raise their chicks, and are vulnerable to attack by predators. Nor do the eggs and chicks fare well if they are constantly disturbed. Dogs should be kept on a leash at this time, and may be banned from some areas of access land.

      Once the grouse are thriving in the height of summer, and the heather moorlands turn purple, the grouse-shooting season starts on 12 August. The ‘glorious twelfth’ sees a lot of activity on the moorlands, with gamekeepers leading shooters (or ‘guns’) from around the world to specially constructed butts, while beaters are employed to drive the grouse towards their doom. Some estates charge a fortune for a day’s shoot, and there is still a tradition of getting fresh grouse to the best London restaurants for immediate consumption. When the shooters take a lunch break, they generally retire to a shooting hut. Some of these are rough and ready, while the better examples are often referred to as ‘gin palaces’. Grouse shooting is as much a social occasion as it is a sport, and a lot of local people gain employment from it.

      Naturally, walkers must expect some grouse moorlands that are designated access land to be closed at various times. There might be a complete ban on dogs, so check in advance whether this is the case (contact the Open Access Contact Centre, tel 0845 1003298, www.openaccess.naturalengland.org.uk). Moorlands may be closed during the breeding season, and at times when shooting is taking place. Even if a moorland is open, please tread carefully, as grouse eggs are notoriously difficult to spot. If a moorland is open, yet shooting is taking place, then be prepared to wait courteously for a break in the shooting. The shooting season finishes on 10 December, but towards the end there may be very little shooting actually taking place.

Access to the countryside

      Many years ago, when faced with the wide-open moorlands of the North Pennines, some walkers simply assumed that they could walk anywhere, while others were more cautious and concerned about the complete lack of rights of way in some areas. The situation over the past few years has been clarified immensely. Rights of way can be followed by anyone, at any time, but there is also a huge amount of designated access land that can be visited by walkers most of the time. The vast military range, the Warcop Training Area, has not been designated access land, and anyone wanting to walk there will find opportunities very limited.

      Large areas of open moorland have been designated access land under the Countryside and Rights of Way (CROW) Act 2000. ‘Access land’ should not be regarded as offering unlimited access. Some areas are indeed open all the time, but others are ‘restricted’, and can be closed for various reasons, including grouse shooting and the movement of animals. There may be a complete ban on dogs at any time in some areas, so check in advance whether this is the case. It is always a good idea to check whether any other restrictions or closures are in force – get in touch with the Open Access Contact Centre, tel 0845 1003298, www.openaccess.naturalengland.org.uk. It is likely that notices will be posted at main access points indicating the nature of any closures. Remember that the access granted is on foot only, and does not extend to bicycles or vehicles, nor does it imply any right to camp on a property.