Gov. Tony Evers directed the state Department of Natural Resources to close 40 Wisconsin state parks, forests, recreational and state natural areas, most of them in southern Wisconsin, due to record attendance over the first two weeks of April.

Evers said the closure is "due to unprecedented crowds, litter, vandalism and out of an abundance of caution to protect health and safety and help flatten the (coronavirus) curve."

The areas were planned to be closed at the end of the day Thursday and remain closed until further notice.

Several of the parks being closed were experiencing record attendance for the month of April, according to the DNR, and include popular sites such as High Cliff in Calumet County, Lapham Peak in the Kettle Moraine State Park near Delafield and Devil's Lake in Baraboo.

Between April 4 and 5, the DNR estimated High Cliff had more than 16,000 visitors, Lapham Peak had more than 11,000 visitors, Kohler-Andrae in Sheboygan had more than 8,000 visitors and Devil's Lake had nearly 8,000 visitors.

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An estimated 3,639 visitors went to Harrington Beach in Ozaukee County last weekend, bringing the total to about 5,600 visitors this month, according to the DNR. Normally, about 9,695 visitors make their way to the park during all of April, according to an average of visits over the last 12 years.

In an effort to minimize the spread of coronavirus at state parks and protect DNR staff, while still keeping properties open, the DNR waived entrance fees, closed state park offices, visitor centers, all nonessential buildings and all campgrounds on March 24.

DNR staff and wardens were still patrolling properties to make sure people were following social distance rules, but with record crowds and already limited staff, there were issues with visitors not packing their trash out of parks and not keeping 6 feet of distance between groups of people who don't live together.

DNR Secretary Preston Cole said that while there are obvious health benefits to getting outside, the agency didn't want to put lives at risk. Evers expressed similar sentiments.

“I wanted to keep state parks open for the public to enjoy during this challenging time, which is why outdoor activity is listed as an essential activity under the Safer at Home order,” Evers said. “Unfortunately, growing difficulty with ensuring social distancing compliance, dwindling cleaning supplies and mounting trash are some of the challenges faced by our state parks staff. We have to address the growing public health and safety concern and protect Wisconsinites.”

Evers warned if the public does not follow social distancing guidelines and vandalizes property, more state parks may have to close.

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“This decision was made the same way the governor has approached every decision in this public health emergency — with the goal of keeping people safe,” Evers spokeswoman Melissa Baldauff said. “His bottom line is he’s going to do everything to keep people safe and healthy."

"When it became clear that a number of people weren't following the social distance guidelines, and when we were having a lot of difficulty in the parks for the DNR staff to keep them clean and safe, the decision became that if we can't have the parks open safely, we're going to have to close them,” she said.

“It’s definitely not a decision the governor made lightly,” she said, noting that the governor and first lady enjoy walking in our state parks themselves.

For now, people can still do that in their own communities. And, hopefully, people can get back to doing that in state parks if we can flatten the curve, Baldauff said.

“The more people that stay home and take this seriously, the sooner we can get through this,” she said.

Closed parks will be barricaded and staffed with wardens who can issue citations and arrest people who enter closed areas, according to Sarah Hoye, communications director for the DNR.

Here are the areas that are closed around the state:

Southeast Wisconsin

Big Foot Beach State Park

Harrington Beach State Park

Havenwoods State Forest

Kohler-Andrae State Park

Kettle Moraine State Forest-Lapham Peak

Kettle Moraine State Forest-Loew Lake

Kettle Moraine State Forest-Mukwonago River

Kettle Moraine State Forest-Northern Unit

Kettle Moraine State Forest-Southern Unit

Kettle Moraine State Forest-Pike Lake

Lakeshore State Park

Richard Bong State Recreational Area

South-central Wisconsin

Aztalan State Park

Belmont Mound State Park

Blue Mound State Park

Cadiz Springs State Recreational Area

Capital Springs State Recreational Area

Cross Plains State Park

Devil’s Lake State Park

Fenley State Recreational Area

Governor Dodge State Park

Governor Nelson State Park

Lake Kegonsa State Park

Lower Wisconsin State Riverway

Mackenzie Center

Mirror Lake State Park

Natural Bridge State Park

Nelson Dewey State Park

New Glarus Woods State Park

Rocky Arbor State Park

Sauk Prairie State Recreational Area

Tower Hill State Park

Wyalusing State Park

Yellowstone Lake State Park

Gibraltar Rock State Natural Area

Pewits Nest State Natural Area

Parfrey’s Glen State Natural Area

Dells of The Wisconsin River State Natural Area

Northeast Wisconsin

High Cliff State Park

Turkey hunting will still be allowed on those properties, including the Kettle Moraine State Forest. The 2020 spring turkey season is April 15 to May 26, with a youth turkey hunt April 11 and 12.

State trails outside of those areas, including the Glacial Drumlin and the Hank Aaron in southeast Wisconsin, and segments of the Ice Age Trail, remain open. Most state parks and forests north of Wisconsin Dells also remain open, but the DNR reiterated advice from public health officials that if people want to exercise outside, they should stay in their communities and still maintain social distance.

Northern Wisconsin communities like Vilas and Door counties, where parks remain open, have asked visitors and second home-owners to stay in their primary residences since those communities have limited health care infrastructure and older populations.