A naked rambler last night vowed to appeal against his conviction after he was found guilty of a public order offence for walking through a popular beauty spot wearing just a backpack, boots and a baseball cap.

Nigel Keer, 41, was fined £315 yesterday after causing distress to a woman walking her dog on Otley Chevin on October 2.

Speaking outside Court after the verdict, Keer said: “I’m not happy with the decision. It’s not right and I will be appealing.

“I’ll be carrying on being a naturist. I like to go to places where it’s less busy for obvious reasons, but Otley Chevin I don’t think is inappropriate.

“The surprise of seeing a naturist whilst you’re out walking I don’t think would be much different to seeing a steam train on the East Coast Main Line.”

The committed naturist kept score of the number of positive reactions versus adverse reactions he received on his naked tea-time stroll at Otley Chevin.

Leeds Magistrates’ Court heard the score was 15-0 in his favour until an off-duty police officer apprehended him after seeing a woman looking at Keer with a “disgusted frown”.

PC Mark Buxton arrested Keer and ordered him to get dressed, which he did after pulling some clothes out of his backpack.

PC Buxton, who was out running at the time, told the court: “She had a disgusted frown across her face. I saw her turning around, I could tell she was upset about something.”

On seeing Keer walking naked through the fields, PC Buxton said he did not believe what he initially saw and carried on running before doing a double-take. “I was so shocked and surprised and to some degree alarmed by what I had just seen,” he said.

Keer, from Cottingley, Leeds, said throughout the trial that he did not mean to cause distress and said “being naked is not an offence”. He said he did not believe the woman referred to by PC Buxton existed.

Judge Christopher Darnton said: “I do accept that Mr Keer is a naturist but I note with some interest that he would not walk with his clothes off in the city centre of Leeds.”