Mrs Alford said other signs she had put up had been knocked down

Vixen Tor, on Dartmoor near Tavistock, has been closed to the public since May after it was bought its new owner, Mary Alford.

Dartmoor National Park Authority and the Ramblers Association have said the signs, which warn people to keep out, are an act of vandalism and an eyesore.

Mary Alford said the signs were her only option to warn people the area was private property.

Unnecessary fence

Mrs Alford said she was advised to close the tor by her insurers as she could be liable if anyone injured themselves.

It is private land, but its previous owners had granted public access for more than 40 years.

Mrs Alford has also put up a fence, which has also been criticised ramblers as "unnecessary".

Don Millgate of the Ramblers' Association said: "I'm appalled. To me, it's vandalism. There's not other word for it.

A fence has also been put up by the tor's owner

"It seems to me quite unnecessary and utterly deplorable. You should not do this in a national park, or anywhere else, for that matter."

A spokesman for the National Park Authority said it was deeply disappointed by the latest "eyesore development" which would "no doubt offend the eye of many visitors to a beautiful landscape".

Mrs Alford has said the fence was needed for livestock control and that the signs were her only option to warn people Vixen Tor was private property, as other signs she had put up had been knocked down.

She said the rocks had been sprayed in the most discrete manner possible.