It only takes a few people to use a passing area before the vegetation is destroyed and becomes unrecoverable.
“Ensuring everyone’s safety is our top priority and we’re asking everyone to adhere to government guidelines around social distancing. Our top advice for walkers when encountering others is to walk single file. If you need to step aside to let others pass at a safe distance, please stop, wait and then return to the path before continuing your walk.”
The National Trust says some sections of Dunwich Heath may need to be rotavated and graded with tractors to make them level if vegetation does not recover
Social distancing on footpaths is causing devastating erosion, the National Trust warned yesterday.
Visitors are damaging landscapes and wildlife as they wander off trails – a problem exacerbated by much higher numbers embracing the countryside.
Rob Rhodes, head of countryside management at the trust, said: ‘Many of our sites are seeing three times the usual number of visitors they would get on a busy summer’s day.
‘However, landscapes are more susceptible to damage at this time of year due to the colder and wetter weather.’
The trust advises walking in single file and waiting for others by standing aside but not leaving a trail.
It only takes a few people to use a passing area before the vegetation is destroyed and becomes unrecoverable.
“Ensuring everyone’s safety is our top priority and we’re asking everyone to adhere to government guidelines around social distancing. Our top advice for walkers when encountering others is to walk single file. If you need to step aside to let others pass at a safe distance, please stop, wait and then return to the path before continuing your walk.”
The National Trust says some sections of Dunwich Heath may need to be rotavated and graded with tractors to make them level if vegetation does not recover
Last modified on Wed 16 Dec 2020 23.37 EST
The pandemic has led to a surge in people venturing out into the great outdoors, and the need for social distancing means walkers give each other a wide berth. But as a result, mountain paths are being badly eroded, cliffside tracks are crumbling and winding trails through woods and heathland are turning into wide, sticky morasses.
Rangers at one spot on the edge of Bristol have reported that paths 2 metres wide have been transformed into 12-metre muddy highways.
The National Trust is flagging up problems at beauty spots ranging from the Lake District to the south coast of England and warning that the issue is likely to become even more acute during the winter unless people alter their behaviour.
Christmas walks could ruin the countryside, National Trust warns
The charity says social distancing causing people to walk off the paths is killing plants and animals
Social distancing is causing people to walk off the paths
Christmas walks could ruin the countryside, the National Trust has warned, as it said that social distancing is causing people to trample wildlife and cause erosion.
The charity said that cumulative effects of winter weather, increased visitor numbers, and social distancing is starting to cause fresh erosion and widening of footpaths at hot spots across England.
Rangers believe that England’s new tiering system and the upcoming Christmas holiday period are likely to attract more people to get out and about in the countryside, causing more damage if action is not taken.