RESIDENTS and ramblers are up in arms after a countryside path was blocked.
The route through the wooded grounds of Shincliffe Hall, Shincliffe, is used by walkers to reach a path alongside the River Wear.
But Durham University, in the process of selling the 18th Century house, has fenced off the path and put up a sign saying it is private property.
Path users are calling on Durham County Council to take action to re-open it.
Andrew and Lesley Tyrrell, of Brandon, said: "We have been using it for ten years and it is one of the best walks in Durham."
Shincliffe resident Colin Hood is urging people to raise the issue with the rights of way section at Durham County Council, and is trying to prove that it has been used for more than 20 years.
A spokesman for Durham University said: "It is not a right of way."
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