POLICE are on the trail of a rambler who has been enjoying sun-soaked outings along one of Britain’s best-known long-distance footpaths wearing nothing but a floppy hat, a pair of hiking boots and a cheery smile.
The man, in his late 30s, has startled passers-by on a number of occasions in the past fortnight during his back-to-nature stroll through the Yorkshire Dales, where he appears to be loosely following the route of the 270-mile Pennine Way.
Officers from North Yorkshire Police, sent out to hunt for the rambler, have found him to be an elusive quarry. Obtaining a detailed description of their 6ft suspect has also proved tricky. Yesterday they would say only that he was of athletic build and boasted an impressive all-over tan.
The most recent sighting, near Skipton, was of two naked men walking together.
Acting Chief Inspector Tadeusz Nowakowski, who is leading the hunt, said yesterday that the mystery rambler could face charges for outraging public decency or the public order offence of causing alarm, distress or harassment.
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“This is something of a first for us,” he said. “We checked through the records and we did find a report of a naked rambler sighted on the west cliffs at Whitby in June, but otherwise the idea of someone actually walking along without any clothes on seems to be quite unusual.
“These incidents might seem quite tame, but the police are taking them seriously due to the distress they have clearly caused to the public. Imagine if your wife was stuck up on her own in the Dales, having her sandwiches and a bit of a nap when suddenly this man comes bumbling around the corner. It’s not really on, is it?” The naked rambler has so far been sighted at Lothersdale, East Marton, Gargrave, Littondale, Airton and Gayle, near Hawes. He bade a cheerful “Good afternoon” to a woman whose jaw dropped as she passed him walking along a canal bank. He obligingly covered up, temporarily, when a Dalesman bluntly told him to put some clothes on.
Mr Nowakowski said he was hoping that some enterprising members of the public might have taken a photograph of the rambler.
“We did send officers to try to find this person, but with no success,” he said. “I suspect he may have put his clothes back on.”