While not strictly relevant to the Crow Act which covers England and Wales only, the question regarding ‘advice’ and access on grouse moors is pertinent in that it undoubtedly reflects a wider desire to limit public access to shooting estates across the UK.   In Scotland there is a ‘right to roam’ (or more accurately a ‘right of responsible access’) which allows access to most of the uplands, and this point about ‘Welcome to the Moor’ signs in the Cairngorms National Park recommending that the public “keep to paths and tracks when possible” was raised on Nick Kempe’s excellent parkswatchscotland blog some years back. The text below largely comes from his post “Grouse moor propaganda and the Cairngorms National Park“ Nick was involved in drawing up the Scottish Outdoor Access Code (SOAC), and says that nowhere in the Code is there an instruction to keep to paths and tracks. Walkers are advised to keep to a path or track – if there is one – when passing people’s houses, but states that “The whole point of the access legislation is it gives people a right to roam, whether on paths or off-paths”. He goes on to say that “There is no justification for the “recommendation” on the sign. Driven grouse moor shooting takes place on only a few days of the year and model signage has been produced to inform walkers that shooting, like deer stalking is in progress.” There are of course valid reasons to ask people to behave responsibly and protect a sensitive environment (even one ‘farmed’ for Red Grouse), but hinting that the public is somehow ‘doing something wrong’ if they leave footpaths (which is not the case) is not the way to put that across. And given their history of raptor persecution, the use of snares and traps, and their profit-driven model it’s little wonder that many of us view such ‘advice’ from shooting estates with suspicion and distrust.