Where can I fly my drone in the UK and get £5,000,000 Public Liability Insurance cover? Welcome to Drone Scene!

Wondering where you can legally fly your drone? Looking for great places to fly? Looking for £5m Public Liability Insurance cover? Well look no further!

Welcome to Drone Scene, the place to find great drone flying locations in the UK, view images and videos posted by other pilots and share your flying locations in order to help other UK hobbyists find great locations where they can fly safely too.

Click on a marker pin to view details of that location. You can also add comments and discuss the location in our forum.

×You must log in to see Airspace Restrictions, Ground Hazards and other interactive map layers.

Powis Castle, Welshpool added to National Trust in Wales by D0c.Col on 29/06/2023

Powis Castle
The present Powis Castle was built in the mid-13th century by a Welsh prince - Gruffudd Ap Gwenwynwyn who wanted to establish his independence from the aggressive princes of Gwynedd in North Wales. This was an act of defiance and in contrast to those built by the English at Conwy, Caernarfon and Harlech in order to suppress the Welsh and consolidate Edward I’s conquest of Wales.
By the late 13th century, Llywelyn ap Gruffudd of Gwynedd had established himself as Prince of Wales, and in 1274 he destroyed Powis Castle, forcing Gruffudd ap Gwenwynwyn into exile.
However, within three years Llywelyn’s principality had crumbled leaving Gruffudd of Powys able to regain his lordship and rebuild the castle. Gruffudd, his son and grandson had all died by 1309, and with no male heir, the castle and lordship passed to an heiress, Hawise who married Sir John Charlton from Shropshire.
In 1312, Hawise’s uncle attacked the castle in an attempt to claim the lordship but failed. Charlton repaired the damage and built two great drum towers that can be seen today, either side of the castle’s west entrance.
Descendants of the Charltons continued as Lords of Powis for over 100 years but in 1421, the lack of a male heir resulted in the castle and estate being divided between two daughters, Joyce and Joan, who had married Sir John Grey and Sir John Tiptoft respectively.
Under the Tiptofts and their successor, Lord Dudley, the Outer Ward of the castle was neglected and needed considerable restoration. Luckily, in the 1530s Edward Grey, Lord Powis, took possession of the whole castle and began a major re-building programme.

In 1587, Edward Herbert purchased the castle and estate and it remained in the hands of the Herbert family until 1952 when George, 4th Earl of Powis, bequeathed the castle and gardens to the National Trust.
In 1902 George began its modernisation by introducing electric lighting and a state of the art hot-water central heating system, and at the same time he worked with his architect to re-establish the 17th Century décor in many of the state rooms, a style he thought more befitting of a medieval castle.
The estate was at its height during the Edwardian Period with notable guests arriving every weekend throughout the winter season, including the Prince and Princess of Wales in November 1909. However, this golden era was not to last as George was to suffer a number of family tragedies. The countess died following a car accident in 1929, both his sons, died whilst on active service, Percy from wounds received at the Battle of the Somme in 1916, and Mervyn in a plane crash in 1943. With no direct heir to the castle, on his death bed in 1952, George bequeathed Powis to the nation, in the care of the National Trust.
In the garden four of the 150m long original terraces remain, the last two having reverted to banks of earth covered with shrubs. The top Terrace is planted with a range of yew trees, a distinctive feature at Powis.

William Emes, apart from the destruction of the water garden, did make improvements to the estate. A road that cut through the park just below the castle was diverted, and much planting was undertaken on the Wilderness Ridge, the line of hills opposite the castle, on the other side of the Great Lawn. The last major transformation of the gardens was undertaken in the early 20th century by Violet, wife of the fourth earl.

The Herbert family continue to live in part of the castle, under an arrangement with the National Trust. The Trust has undertaken a number of major works of restoration during its ownership, including the Marquess Gate,[ the Grand Staircase, and the sculpture of Fame in the Outer Courtyard. Powis Castle is a Grade I listed building, while its gardens have their own Grade I listing and together they form an irresistible attraction that receives over 200,000 visitors a Year.

The flight was inside a FRZ but had authorisation from the relevant ATC and the local council does not have a bylaw to prevent TOAL. I was easily able to launch the DJI mini 3 Pro close from a public path just outside NT property and maintained VLOS with the assistance of a spotter (my wife).

https://www.youtube.com/@DocColVideo/

Land owner permission requirements unknown.

View and discuss this location in more detail on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 52.65246, -3.15728 • what3words: ///strongman.snapper.just

The originator declared that this location was inside a flight restriction zone at the time of being flown. Permission to fly was obtained from Welshpool ATC. It remains the responsibility of any pilot to check for any changes before flying at the same location.

Where to fly your drone


Recently added locations

River Wear at Hylton (By mollin)

This is really a 2-part location, with Hylton Viaduct as the separation line; with each part accessed from the same starting point.

Parking at W3W: ///served.only.live (or across the road in the other car park…) is free.

The car park is next to the burnt-out shell of the Golden Lion pub. You will also find the old ferry tethering post, and a small boat with a large rock in it, next to the car park.

If you don't have a car, South Hylton metro station is only about 500m away.

Other Points of Interest (POIs)
The Wear Hopper 36 is at W3W: ///party.reap.jabs
The Shipwrights pub is at W3W: ///then.horses.gifted

TOAL from W3W: ///arrow.drank.closed, or follow the public footpath further along the river bank and choose a spot to your liking.

The 2 anchors are at W3W: ///economies.prices.study – they lie either side of a path through the trees near the Golden Lion.

Hylton Viaduct is at W3W: ///storms.length.mole

There is a public footpath that goes under the bridge. Follow this path and you will come to the wreck of the Elegant II near the river bank. The last part of this short walk can be wet and muddy, wear appropriate footwear.

A useful TOAL spot is at W3W: ///curiosity.trim.swim – this gives line of sight to both the Elegant II and the viaduct.

For all POIs, watch out for birds and other wildlife.
Enjoy!

Land owner permission requirements unknown.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 54.90495, -1.456158 • what3words: ///oils.indoor.cotton

Whitrope Heritage Centre (By paulburgh)

It is a heritage with a few trains - kinda cool.

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 55.29371, -2.748002 • what3words: ///wipes.tomorrow.daredevil

Mealt Falls and Kilt Rocks (By AlbionDrones)

Decent sized car park, which gets busy, but superb views over the waterfall and great VLOS over the water to Kilt Rocks.

No anti-drone signage and on a clear day excellent views, be warned though, when windy the waterfall flows upwards.

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 57.61092, -6.172351 • what3words: ///named.existence.dolphins

Seilebost and Luskentyre Beaches, Isle of Harris (By AlbionDrones)

.If you get the weather - and we did - then the Isles of Lewis and Harris are among the most beautiful places in the world, and the beaches of Luskentyre and Seilebost are truly outstanding...

Park at the Old School Car Park - free - and walk to the beach - bewars Ticks as the fields are sheep infested...

Log ranging views, which I don't feel I did particular justice to as we were with friends and I didnt want to delay folks too much, I need to return here for a longer stay...

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 57.86892, -6.953348 • what3words: ///chaos.rushed.column

Wardlow Quarry (By Grockerman)

Parking is conveniently available near the site. I embarked from a public footpath that circles the quarry's edge. As the quarry is operational, it's important to be cautious. Nonetheless, the weather was delightful, and I enjoyed some breathtaking views.

https://w3w.co/blueberry.unzipped.shadowed

Land owner permission requirements unknown.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 53.02616, -1.879577 • what3words: ///reliving.quantity.zealous

Barnham mill (By grandad1950)

An old mill that is now a residential building. Tricky TOAL from a small car park by the shops with lots of telephone wires overhead. Try it if you like a challenge

Land owner permission requirements unknown.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 50.82703, -0.627404 • what3words: ///bumpy.punk.random

Cliffs of Arbroath (By dansdrone)

This is tricky, be prepared not to fly depending on conditions and if you're using something other than a mini, the area for TOAL to comply with SSSI is not massive so people could be nearby. I was able to get there first thing in the morning in November, so nobody was around.

To fly at the cliffs but avoid the SSSI and/or hikers, note the small gap in the SSSI near the carpark. I set up at the end of that gap, flew through the gap out to open water. That was my passageway each time. I'm not sure if that was being overly cautious, but seemed like a good idea. I also did not overfly the cliffs at any point. With that being said, I had no issues.

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 56.56017, -2.557476 • what3words: ///daring.vocab.spit

Cuilin Views, Elgol, Isle of Skye (By AlbionDrones)

Perhaps the most iconic Skye view of the Cuillins, Loch Scavaig, and the Small Isles - Rum, Eigg and Canna - from the remote village of Elgol, a classic photographic spot reimagined with the DJI Air3.

Taken on our last full day on Skye, as the weather was beginning to break - 25 mins later we were dodging the rain - but still the landscape was looking gorgeous.

The foreshore has an SSSI for fossils, but there are no restrictions for drone flying nor at the Car Parking area, which is where I flew from.

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 57.14569, -6.106949 • what3words: ///spines.trending.fraction

Glen Shiel Waterfall and Bridge (By dansdrone)

Beautiful view of the River Shiel and stone bridge that I couldn't quite figure out the purpose of - doesn't seem to go anywhere of note. Easy to get more than 50 meters from car park and able to maintain that separation from road with no problem. November flight outside of the restricted hours for RAF Low Flying.

Kept drone flight low and very close given proximity to road, and only flown when no other cars were parked in the car park. A little ways back down the road, there is a trailhead for hikers but again keeping the drone low and very close made this a non-issue.

GREAT for shots where you have a foreground element (a small hill, or the bridge, or a tree) that the drone can move around/focus on, with a gorgeous background in the shot.

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 57.16588, -5.325561 • what3words: ///firelight.noses.chaos

Cotter Force, Richmond (By D0c.Col)

The Falls and Cotterdale Beck.

Cotter Force is a small waterfall on Cotterdale Beck, a minor tributary of the River Ure, near the mouth of Cotterdale, a side dale in Wensleydale, North Yorkshire, England. Cotterdale Beck has several other smaller falls in its course before joining the Ure, but Cotter Force is the largest. The force is not visible from the road, but it takes only a short walk to reach it. It comprises a series of six steps each its own small waterfall with the largest single drop being about 5 feet (1.5 m). The force is narrower at 13 feet (4 m) at the top widening to 43 feet (13 m) at the bottom.[4] A short path allows easy access from the A684 near Holme Heads Bridge approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Hawes. After the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust carried out an upgrade to its footpath, Cotter Force is now accessible to wheelchair users and less mobile visitors and a small layby is right next to a sign adjacent to the path from the road.

Be aware, that if you want to get close to the action there is a lot of small branches to negotiate!

Land owner permission not required.

View and discuss this location on Grey Arrows.

Co-ordinates: 54.32284, -2.234763 • what3words: ///adapt.additives.chemistry


Show All Locations

Service provided by