Lewis Winks

The Government have today announced an Access Green Paper which will consult on how to ‘strengthen the public’s legal right to access’.

This is welcome - but further delay isn't: Labour MPs & access NGOs are united on the need for access legislation now.

@righttoroam.bsky.social comment:

A swollen river, red with Devon topsoil. A house visible on the far bank.

Tonnes of topsoil heading seaward, washed out by rainfall from the River Dart Catchment, South Devon.

With heavy rainfall events becoming more frequent as a result of climate breakdown, leaving fields bare at this time of year is a recipe for literal disaster.

ChatGPT’s signature writing style is everywhere now, and I hate it. It reminds me of when we tried mixing all the beverages at the soda fountain in middle school. We didn’t actually create the perfect drink, we just made a cloying monstrosity that lost everything good about its constituent parts.

Why Your House Is Full of Stuff
You'll Never Use.

Absolutely.

Willow trees on Prince William’s land in Devon poisoned with herbicide Exclusive: Unknown culprit suspected of spraying glyphosate on protected trees hoped to stop peat erosion and flooding

Trees high on Dartmoor have been deliberately poisoned.

Perhaps an act rooted in frustration and of sorrow at the passing of an unfettered time... but an act of ecological vandalism nonetheless.

www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...

Three people on a small stage under a canvas roof with a mountain backdrop holding microphones with an audience watching.

@ebenmyrddin.bsky.social repping wild camping at the Basecamp stage at Kendal Mountain Festival.

A real joy to be at Kendal Mountain Festival with @righttoroam.bsky.social and friends -- raising our voices for equitable access to nature.

Wild camping: we won the battle on Dartmoor, now what?

Listening to @lewis-winks.bsky.social, @maryannochota.bsky.social & Aila Taylor discussing extending the right to wild camp in England - at Kendal Mountain Festival, in (appropriately enough) a very big tent

'the abandoned paper mill was actually a deeply contaminated and highly radioactive former frack waste treatment plan'

Hard to overstate the enduring filth released by fossil fuel extraction

Great trespass along the River Dart today to kick off @righttoroam.bsky.social's 9 river trespasses in November - protesting the inadequacy & unworkability of the Govt's 9 river walks pledge

We trespassed in an estate owned in the Cayman Islands & later met up with kayakers from Friends of the Dart

Over 200 charities, businesses and organisations have signed our open letter to Prime Minister Keir Starmer asking him not to weaken the laws protecting National Parks and National Landscapes.

Over 200 charities, businesses & organisations have signed our open letter to Keir Starmer asking him not to weaken the laws protecting National Parks and Landscapes.

We're so thankful to everyone who added their name 💪

This letter represents millions of people and shows that #NationalParksMatter

Very excited to share that I'm writing a new book, THE GHOSTS OF CHALK COUNTRY - about the loss of England's chalk downland: a tale of flowers, fascism & freedom.

To be published by @wmcollinsbooks.bsky.social in April 2027:
www.thebookseller.com/rights/willi...

Website: ghostsofchalkcountry.org

How do we fix this mess?

Absolutely delighted that my book THE LIE OF THE LAND has won the Wainwright Prize for Conservation Writing!

This week, one of the book’s recommendations, a ban on moorland burning, became a reality. Next, we need a Nature Bill for England…

bsky.app/profile/wain...

Bluefin tuna are miraculously returning to UK shores – only to be tormented for ‘sport’ | George Monbiot A tournament in Cornwall will pit anglers against these magnificent creatures, as part of a rising trend for so-called ‘sportfishing’, says Guardian columnist George Monbiot

This week's column. The details will make you gasp and rage. This massive desecration of nature is almost unbelievable, but it is happening in the UK right now.
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

This prize draw is generously supported by some of the cream of British nature writing.

A fiver to enter might win you books, art and other goodies.
That’s the ‘maybe’… the ‘definitely’ is that it will support our work to connect everyone in England and Wales with their nearby nature.

Your chance to support Right to Roam's trailblazing grassroots work to expand responsible access to land and water.

All proceeds will go towards a once-in-a-generation opportunity to shift in our relationship with the countryside PLUS a chance to win some nature inspired prizes! ⬇️✨

Help raise £5000 to complete a 1,000 mile litter pick for Trash Free Trails – JustGiving Crowdfunding Iʼm raising money to complete a 1,000 mile litter pick for Trash Free Trails. Support this JustGiving Crowdfunding Page.

My mate Damien is currently undertaking the world's longest litter pick - the Lu'Crusade - on his bicycle, to raise money for Trash Free Trails.

If you can, please support his efforts!
www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding...

Love #Dartmoor? Now’s your chance to influence its future.

People who care passionately about the National Park are invited to share their views on the priorities that will guide this unique landscape for years to come.

Complete the Public Opinion Survey: forms.office.com/pages/respon...

Latest pheasant release stats point to widespread rule-breaking by shooting estates This post is by Guy Shrubsole. Photo: a rather gruesome sight on a shooting estate in Berkshire. 25.9 million pheasants are currently being bred, reared or released in England, according to the lat…

I got hold of the latest *official* stats for how many pheasants are being bred, reared and released in England

It's a big number - 25.9 million - but it's far less than the reality

It points to widespread rule-breaking by shooting estates failing to register:

whoownsengland.org/2025/07/31/l...

The Guardian view on England’s riverbanks: landscapes that everyone should be able to enjoy | Editorial Editorial: Only a small sliver of riverside land is accessible to the public. Rights of way shouldn’t depend on the goodwill of landowners

Great leader in today's Guardian building on our research into ownership of rivers:

"...there is no guarantee that landowners will allow the public to enjoy these landscapes. This, surely, has to change."

www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Happy #RewildingRoundup 🐛💚

🌊 Research by @lewis-winks.bsky.social has shown that Devon's river Dart has a staggering 108 owners, many of whom are aristocracy, demonstrating the vital link between conserving nature and addressing the country's need for more public access & ownership.

No, the research focuses on ownership which is antecedent to access conditions - there are some estates such as Sharpham and Dartington which take a benevolent view on access, whereas others less so. Where permissive arrangements exist such as at Dartington, there are no guarantees they will remain.

Thanks Jenny!

Devon campaigners call for ‘right to riverbank’ after finding Dart has 108 owners Research shows difficulties ahead for ministers if they are to keep manifesto pledge to extend riverside public access

Excellent to hear @lewis-winks.bsky.social on the Today programme this morning discussing his research on 'Who owns the River Dart' - and why this shows we need a right of responsible access

Listen here (45mins in): www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/...

Guardian story: www.theguardian.com/environment/...

Yes quite possibly. I would imagine the Dart has a relatively low number of owners per km compared to other rivers due to the large estates on its lower course, and Dartmoor having the Duchy ownership.

In the UK the river bed ownership varies. On the Dart, upstream (non tidal) it's mostly bankside landowners; downstream it's the Duchy of Cornwall. However I'm more interested in who controls access to the river itself!

I didn't bother mapping all the small individual land parcels in towns and villages, for a few reasons - but mostly because they have nearly no bearing on access! That said, there are more corps in towns which could be added.

I hope this research supports campaigns for a rights-based approach to river access, rather than complex permissive negotiations; I also hope it supports groups such as Friends of The Dart to push for better protections for rivers.

Finally, I hope it inspires others to undertake their own research!