Clearing Trees?

I don't know, but can you check with the landowner?

Sometimes it is easier to ask forgiveness than permission...

It's the landowner's responsibility

Report it via the council website, the RoW officer will check it and instruct the landowner to clear it

I reported a fallen tree to the PBW ranger near us; he was going to deal with it but before he got up there some good Samaritan had done it. I assume it's probably OK so long as the wood isn't removed?

From talking with NRW, they're absolutely fine with us removing trees using handsaws (my silky gets rid of most bits to be fair) but they don't take kindly to chainsaws on their land as there's a whole heap of liability/insurance issues to deal with.

Our ROW team and the council guys are fine with us doing stuff up to a point (on PROW & council land respectively - NOT private land).

No power tools - that's a hard and fast rule.. (I suspect if you actually have a chainsaw training ticket and insurance to use it, they'd be less fussed, but no have-a-go-heroes)
If its hung up, steep slope, or has the root plate/ball still attached - leave it (the latter have a habit of standing themselves back up when you take the weight out of them and hung up trees are scary even if you know what you're doing)
So skinny/bushy stuff or bigger stuff that's flat on the deck is fine - within limits of bowsaw/silky. Even then - have a good think about which bits are in tension, which in compression and how any sections are going to want to move as they get separated from the main lump.
Cut branches off close to main trunks - don't leave spikey ends for riders to impale themselves on if they have a moment.

Report it via   FixMyStreet  

The report is then in the public domain , not just buried away on some To Do list, and they are more likely to act quickly.  I had some long overgrown and forgotten paths near my old place, 20 years+ of neglect - and they were cleared within 2 weeks.

crossed

Full Member

Is there anything to stop me from taking a chainsaw and clearing fallen trees from a local bridleway?

I clear stuff all the time with a Fiskars folding saw, but I wouldn't go clearing stuff with a chainsaw.

Jon Edward's post is good advice.

What Jon said. 

Trees can and do move quickly. Not understanding and appreciating the forces present (and how different species react) can lead to a whole world of pain in an instant. 

Besides, you don't want to be that guy with his saw stuck as you didn't understand compression and tension. 😂

You can cut enough to make appropriate progress. Strictly the landowner should do it to correct requirements within a reasonable time. Any cut materials belong to the landowner. Be aware of any potential damage and that could include you chopping a tree that could be reinstated, even partially. There is no legal restriction on running a saw generally but there may be a bylaw or specific landowner restriction.

Some good points there, thanks all.

I happily clear smaller stuff but this one won’t be moving without a decent size saw so I’ve reported it and I’ll avoid that trail for then time being until it’s sorted.

Jonedwards advice is good. Windthrown trees are the most dangerous thing you can tackle with a chainsaw. In the forestry industry it’s often first choice to use a machine of possible due to the risks involved. If you need a chainsaw to clear something and you haven’t had wind throw training and experience then I’d leave it well alone. That’s before you get onto insurance, first aid, a buddy who knows how to extract you/ fix you etc. I’m in the business and am an ex forestry contractor who has done a lot of clearance of wind throw. We’re finding these days that a lot of our chainsaw operators haven’t got the experience and people with a decent level of knowledge and experienced for dealing with fallen trees are fewer and further between. Getting squashed by stems, speared by torn branches, flattened by rolling trunks, squashed by rootplates, facial injuries from branches under tension - its hazards galore. Obvs smaller stuff that you can do with a silky has less risk but you’d be surprised at the tension in some small trees and branches even. I got trapped by really innocuous ash tree I felled once, it wasn’t pleasant and was half the size of the next smallest tree I was cutting that day. Classic just before lunch took my eye off the ball etc. lucky the ground was boggy and the only reason I don’t get a mangled foot! 

When I was a cutter one of the other guy's uncle was killed by a wind blown root plate falling on him.  I've watched folk who wouldn't listen get the fright of their life as  big trees barber chaired.

I miss the challenge and problem solving of saw work.