SORRY THE PARK IS CLOSED, THE MOOSE OUT FRONT SHOULD HAVE TOLD YOU

Our favorite outdoor places certainly are not being spared in this world gone crazy. Thought to be a good way to improve mental health, relieve stress and get some exercise during last month's early days of the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, our national and state parks remained open, despite orders to stay in place. Park officials then, encouraged folks to remain diligent by taking steps to make park visits as safe and as enjoyable as possible while recommending "Social Distancing" policies.

But with spring break temperatures, the first weekend of the order produced large crowds as people packed beaches, parks, and hiking trails either oblivious to or ignoring the pleas stay at home. Public health officials said by drawing large crowds of people who congregate too closely together it could easily spread the virus even further.

“I wish we could find refuge in national parks right now but in many cases, the parks are too crowded to be safe,” Phil Francis, chair of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks told the Guardian, “It’s just not possible to keep people far enough apart on the trails. If CDC guidelines aren’t being followed then the parks need to be closed.”

To limit usage, many park managers have since shut down open spaces and park areas around the country. While others have closed off vehicle access but left trails and beaches open to visitors who can still travel via bicycle and on foot in efforts to prevent visitation surges.

Kayaking, canoeing, and paddleboarding are considered to be a form of exercise where the practice of social distancing can easily be accomplished and abided once on the water. However, for paddle sports enthusiasts it means limited or challenging access to public waterways that are often part of the state, county, and national park's venues.

Like Clark Griswold in the movie National Lampoon's Vacation, many have been left wanting to punch a moose statue while being frustrated by locked gates that have shutoff easy access to the lake or river.

But still many like Orlando Sentinel's John Cutter, have managed to get to the water.
"Talk about your social distancing!" wrote Cutter in his column about kayaking in Florida's Dora Canal, "A few boats and one paddleboarder passed me, but otherwise my only company was my thoughts and herons of various types, including one not-too-shy Great Blue Heron. It was an easy trip, perhaps a 1.5-mile roundtrip in the shade and calm waters.

Others like Chicago's Sharon Bloyd-Peshkin of Have Kayaks Will Travel, a paddlesport coaching business, ultimately decided against it, in the spirit of supporting physical distancing and the possibility of requiring assistance from an overwhelmed emergency response system.
"So we put away our paddles and PFDs," she wrote in the Chicago Sun-Times, "Personal flotation devices. Everyone is making sacrifices. Some are huge. Ours, honestly, are small. But we must do our part, we decided, to not only practice physical distancing but to support the general appearance of physical distancing that normalizes this abnormal behavior and helps keep everyone safe."

Coronavirus is affecting the world in so many ways now. While for some, the best thing is just not paddled for a while. As for others, paddling responsibly offers a great opportunity to get out of the house, stay healthy (mentally and physically) and connect with nature with social distancing and isolation is the key.
Social distancing measures seem to be holding down the spread in some areas as health experts say the country is not ready to shift to normal. They say, easing social distancing too soon could risk a huge resurgence in coronavirus cases much worse than what we've seen already.

Meaning for paddle sports enthusiasts expect in the coming weeks and maybe months of the hearing, Sorry folks the park is closed. The moose out front should have told you.

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