County beauty spots stay shut as lockdown goes on

* Loggerheads remains closed during the lockdown.

Denbighshire County Council is reminding visitors and residents not to travel to the county’s beauty spots for exercise.

It says that in the past week there has been an increase in visitors to Loggerheads and Moel Famau country parks as well as sites including Castell Dinas Bran and the Horseshoe Falls in the Dee Valley. 

Cllr Tony Thomas, the Council’s Lead Member for Housing and Communities, said: “The council has closed its two most popular sites at Loggerheads and Moel Famau to prevent visitors travelling to the area. 

"We want to reassure residents we have been working closely with North Wales Police who regularly patrol beauty spots in the county and are moving visitors on. The majority of visitors are out of county and one had driven from Blackpool. 

“The advice from the Welsh Government and North Wales Police is clear, it is not regarded as essential travel to drive to beauty spots to exercise. We are urging everyone to stay home and help save lives during this pandemic.”

Deputy Chief Constable Richard Debicki of North Wales Police said: “Our tourist attractions, mountains, pubs, restaurants, caravan, holiday parks and campsites are all closed.

“We completely understand people want to go outside to enjoy the warm weather, however this is a national emergency and we will continue to ensure government guidelines around essential travel and social distancing are adhered to.

“Please only travel if your journey is absolutely essential. This means either shopping for food or medicine and traveling to and from work if you cannot work from home. Our policing style remains unchanged, and we will be operating in a very visible way on our road networks and in towns and villages ensuring that people are complying with the restrictions.”