Increase in walkers causes more 'wear and tear' on South West Coast Path

Increased footfall is expected to cause more 'wear and tear' than usual to the South West Coast Path.

With more people enjoying local walks during lockdown, coupled with winter weathering, authorities have warned that parts of the scenic 630-mile path have widened.

Visitors have now been advised to avoid particularly over-used and popular areas of the path.

Speaking on the increase of walkers, Richard Walton, national trail officer, told the BBC: "Where they're trying to avoid mud and puddles, the path is kind of getting wider and eroding wider, so it's about trying to make sure that we're having as minimal physical impact as we can.

Becky Millington, from the South West Coast Path Association, added: "Everyone's got a new hobby of walking, so we're finding so many more people, people who would not have normally done a walking holiday... all considering visiting the South West for that reason. So we're definitely expecting a very, very busy year ahead."

"It's about trying to get people to think about going a bit broader so not just hitting those honey pot sites that we all know about."