If it's all about social distancing, what better place to get away from neighbors than one of Palm Beach County's many wild and scenic nature preserves? But most people congregate near the openings and parking lots, the county says, and don't go far back into the wild areas.

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In the wide open wild and scenic spaces of Palm Beach County's natural areas, social distancing was an often unconscious and desired practice by visitors long before the coronavirus pandemic.

Hikers and bikers in many of the 27 wilderness areas, which cover 31,000 acres from Jupiter to Boca Raton, often have a better chance of encountering deer, wild turkeys and alligators than fellow human beings — which for many people is the point of going.

No wonder there have been howls of protest on social media over the county's decision last month to close the natural areas to reduce the risk of exposure to the deadly respiratory virus.

“Oh please nooooo!” Gina Sousa of West Palm Beach wrote on Facebook. “This is our only escape … in open air, away from other people. This is devastating."

For many people cooped up at home, the move was one of what felt like an avalanche of closures of popular outdoor spots — from beaches and public parks to golf courses and marinas — as the pandemic continued its unabated spread.

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The county's concern was that the beach and park closures would drive more and more people seeking outdoor options to the natural areas, increasing the risk of unsafe conditions in the parking lots and trails.

The waterfront sidewalk along Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach, for example, has been more crowded than ever with rollerbladers, dog walkers, bicyclists and joggers since beach and park closures took effect.

And while most of the county's natural areas are vast, studies show that a majority of visitors to public parks rarely venture more than half-mile past the parking lot, said Benji Studt, the public outreach supervisor for the county's department of Environmental Resources Management.

“When the message needs to be as serious as it is now, which is to stay at home, the decision had to be made to close the natural areas," he said.

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But many nature enthusiasts said the county should try to offer compromises, such as keeping larger areas open with signs discouraging people from staying if the parking lots are crowded.

“They could be strategically patrolled and the problem of crowding addressed where it is apparent," Dale E. Gawlick, director of the environmental science program at Florida Atlantic University, wrote in an op-ed in The Palm Beach Post.

County officials can improve “the sustainability” of their efforts to fight the pandemic, he said, if they viewed the natural areas as “an underappreciated asset for breaking transmission of the coronavirus."

Some outdoor enthusiasts agree it makes sense to close smaller natural areas like South Cove, which consists of a 556-foot boardwalk over the Lake Worth Lagoon off of Flagler Drive in downtown West Palm Beach, or even Pine Glades, a popular sunset spot in Jupiter Farms but with limited public access.

But they said bicyclists, joggers and hikers who venture beyond the half-mile mark should be allowed to explore the miles and miles of paths in the larger natural areas. Among them: the 12,481-acre Loxahatchee Slough in Palm Beach Gardens (the largest in the county system), the 2,000-acre Cypress Creek in Jupiter Farms and the 548-acre Winding Waters in West Palm Beach.

“Closing every single one of these because there was a group 'somewhere' feels excessive," said Ana Mahloch, who called the closure of the natural areas “a big loss” for her two children.

“Nature is therapy for so many people," she said on Facebook, “and these same people no longer have access to their actual therapists."

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'18 acres for each of us'

George Matzen of Boca Raton said he might see a dozen people on what he considers a busy day at the Yamato Scrub, a 217-acre oasis between Congress Avenue and Interstate 95.

“That's 18 acres for each of us," Matzen wrote on ERM's Facebook page. “This shutdown needs to be revisited. Let's reopen the natural areas."

Many bicyclists pedal along the dirt-packed and shellrock trails in the natural areas as a safe alternative to riding on suburban streets, said Joe Wignall of West Palm Beach.

“If we are prohibited from access to these areas, I will end up riding less for sure, but will likely end up riding on roads with car traffic where I am ultimately less safe and at higher risk of incident and injury," he said in an email.

But even on wilderness trails in wide open spaces, the shrinking of outdoor recreation options during the pandemic can present hazards.

The trails around Grassy Waters Preserve, a 23-square-mile wetlands ecosystem in West Palm Beach, were busier than usual in the days before the city closed that popular spot to the public last month.

“Although normally uncrowded with great views of the Everglades, in the weeks preceding the shutdown more and more people were on the trails," said Steve Scherer, a bike rider and vice president of the Grassy Waters Conservancy, a nonprofit of volunteers who support the preserve.

“On one of our last rides, we experienced something that had never happened in years of riding in Grassy Waters. Some riders recklessly rode by, knocking one of us down," he said in an email.

No one was injured, he said. But he added, “With all that's going on, reducing risk and staying safe should be each of our priorities."

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Avoid crowded parking lots

One of the few outdoor wilderness areas still open to the public in Palm Beach County is the Arthur R. Marshall National Wildlife Refuge. The visitor center off Lee Road west of Boynton Beach is closed and entry fees are waived but the park is open.

The refuge website encourages visitors to avoid crowded parking lots.

The county should be able to do something similar with some of its natural areas, Mahloch and other outdoor enthusiasts say.

“The closures are especially unfortunate given the benefits that nature has on reducing stress and anxiety, which are so rampant right now," said Sarah Peters of North Palm Beach. “I hope this leaves us with a better appreciation of these precious, publicly-owned natural resources on the other side.”

Studt said it's “heartbreaking” to hear and read testimonials posted on ERM's Facebook page from enthusiasts who miss the natural areas.

“Our Natural Areas do lend themselves to recreating outdoors and using our public lands safely and using social distance" he said. “But right now and for the near future it's just so important to drive home that message that we need to stay apart and in our homes."

Until then, Studt has turned the ERM Facebook page into a virtual online natural area with videos and photos aimed at “telling stories from the woods to let people know what's happening even when they can't visit."

A video shot April 2 and posted Monday, part of a new series called “PBC Natural Areas NOW,” featured the release of a king rail, a so-called “secretive marsh bird,” at Pine Glades with avian ecologist Mark Cook from the South Florida Water Management District.

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Upcoming episodes include “virtual hikes," a meditation video and a one on ground orchids.

“Our public lands system here is second to none. We have essentially a national park in our backyard and nobody around the nation knows about it," Studt said.

“Hopefully our natural areas can be one of those first things we can bring back. And I really hope people will go out and explore and realize that these lands are not just vital for habitat, they're not just vital for wildlife. They're vital for us."

jcapozzi@pbpost.com

@JCapozzipbpost