The planning authority has given Glen Clova Estate’s owners a year to restore the upper part of the 1.5km-long track.

Glen Clova Estate said the enforcement notice had come “out of the blue” and it was now “considering its position”.

A spokesman for the estate told the BBC it believed the matter had been resolved with the park authority “as of summer 2018”.

Ramblers Scotland welcomed the ruling, describing the track as “ugly”.

The CNPA has also issued an enforcement notice for an existing old farm track further down the hillside.

It requires a retrospective planning application to be submitted within a three-month period for changes to the section of track.

Murray Ferguson, CNPA director of planning and rural development, said: “It is disappointing that, despite discussions with the landowner, we have had to issue these enforcement notices but we cannot allow unregulated development that has an adverse impact on the landscape.”

Helen Todd from Ramblers Scotland praised the CNPA for taking action against the “ugly and unauthorised track”, which she described as “a scar upon the landscape in this historic, protected glen”.

She said: “I hope that other landowners across Scotland will take notice of the Glen Clova order, which will force the person who built this track to pay for an expensive restoration job.”