Britons took full advantage of the loosened lockdown today by heading to parks and beaches to soak up the sunshine.
Boris Johnson’s road map back to normality has given the green light for unlimited exercise and sunbathing, which has been seized upon by the public.
Fitness enthusiasts were pictured working up a sweat in London’s Hyde Park, while many more sprawled out on the grass under the warm weather.
But while city dwellers in the capital enjoyed the extended freedoms, rural communities are nervous about being swamped by crowds this weekend.
A row has already exploded inside one of Devon’s coastal towns after second-home owners flocked to the seaside to use their yachts.
Range Rovers and other luxury cars appeared in Salcombe – dubbed Chelsea-on-Sea – overnight with their vessels in tow, leaving the full-time population of largely elderly residents ‘frightened’ about becoming infected.
And isolated towns and villages across the UK which have largely managed to insulate themselves from coronavirus are anxious of being breached if a sudden flood of people into the countryside.
Sunshine and temperatures pushing 70F in some places are likely to tempt hordes of Britons outdoors after seven weeks of being cooped-up at home.
Tourist chiefs have warned popular hiking spots will become ‘honeypots’ and attract a swarm of Britons, to the dismay of locals.
Two women on the beach at the seaside resort of Weymouth in Dorset on a day of warm sunshine after the coronavirus lockdown restrictions were eased
Sun-lovers enjoy their extended freedom to sunbathe in London’s Hyde Park today in the warm weather
Britons took full advantage of the loosened lockdown today by heading to parks and beaches to soak up the sunshine (Bournemouth pictured)
Boris Johnson has allowed people to exercise as often as they like, prompting fitness enthusiasts to head to Hyde Park to work up a sweat
A runner jogs alongside the Thames to the backdrop of the iconic Tower Bridge today
A row has already exploded inside one of Devon’s coastal towns after second-home owners flocked to the seaside to use their yachts
Richard Leafe, chief executive of the Lake District National Park, this morning relayed the anxiousness simmering in these communities.
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today: ‘Our message would therefore be don’t rush back to the Lake District. Normally at this time of year in May we could expect around two million people coming to the National Park and obviously if people come in those kind of numbers that’s going to cause real concern in the communities that live and work in Cumbria about an increase in transmission of the disease.
‘Cumbria already has a fairly high incidence of Covid so there’s already real concern on the ground about the amount of people coming back to take their unlimited outdoor exercise, which in itself is a very good thing but if everyone tries to do it in one space, that could lead to problems in the Lake District.’
His fears were echoed by National Trust director Hilary McGrady, who urged people to travel to less well-known areas where crowds would be less dense.
Ms McGrady said: ‘This really isn’t the time for people to jump and go somewhere they’re not familiar with. There are a lot of beautiful green spaces close to people within a half hour drive time.
‘But I would absolutely concur this is about respect about people taking care of themselves but care of each other and we’re all trying to do this as safely as possible that of course is our priority for our customers and our staff.
‘Local communities are genuinely and rightly nervous about having large numbers of people arrive.’
Cyclists on seafront in Bournemouth, Dorset where the council are threatening to ban cycling along the promenade due to an increase in near-misses between bikes and pedestrians
A jogger out for a run this morning, ahead of what could be a warm weekend, as the sun shines at Nene Park, Peterborough
The wind direction is set to pivot which, instead of cold Arctic air, will blow warm tropical breezes towards the UK’s shores (Friday, left and Sunday, right)
Boris Johnson’s road map back to normality on Wednesday gave the green light for unlimited exercise and permitted people to drive to beauty spots – making tomorrow the first opportunity for many workers to enjoy these new freedoms (Wimbledon Common this morning)
While the National Trust’s ticketed estates remain closed, they have opened 350 car parks and are planning more openings as furloughed staff are brought back to work.
Mr Leafe said that National Park staff would be patrolling Lake District car parks this weekend to ensure they were not overflowing.
Communities dotted around these beauty spots are braced for an influx of people as temperatures start to climb heading into next week.
The wind direction is set to pivot which, instead of cold Arctic air, will blow warm tropical breezes towards the UK’s shores.
Most of the UK will remain cloudy and dry on Saturday with many areas dry with sunny spells and feeling rather warm, while hitting up to 60F in the South. Scotland will see rainfall on Sunday, but parts of the South East will see highs of 70F.
Urging the ‘utmost caution’, Sarah Lee of the Countryside Alliance told MailOnline: ‘There is no doubt we need to work together to restart the rural economy when the time is right and it is safe to do.
‘The countryside thrives when it is open for business. That being said, there are clearly very deep anxieties among many rural communities and as it stands, many feel we are not quite at the stage where we can cope with huge numbers of people travelling from afar, visiting isolated spots.’
Some would-be tourists said they would be steering clear of beauty spots after a flurry of social media posts hinted that they would be targeted by angry locals.
One popular Lake District community group ‘descended into hate’ as people debated if tourists should be allowed or not.
A man commented on the Facebook page: ‘There is going to be a lot of vehicle vandalism. One person wrote: ‘I’m gagging to get up to the Lakes but I won’t be going simply because I’m worried about my car being vandalised by angry locals while I’m up a hill.’
Another posted: ‘This group has got really nasty… what has this virus turned us into? We were planning a trip up when everything has settled down but judging by the comments I do not think we’d be welcome.’