Residents living near an Inverness forest have complained that walkers are driving to the beauty spot to take their lockdown exercise.
Culloden Wood, which is a popular spot for walkers, runners and cyclists, remains open to the public but its car park has been closed following government advice that people should exercise near their own homes.
However, a number of cars have been spotted parking in the adjacent Smithton Free Church car park, believed to have been left by people heading into the wooded area.
Local resident Kyrena Mackay raised the issue on the Neighbourhood Watch Inverness Facebook page and has now asked the church to take action to try to discourage people driving to the area during the lockdown period.
She said: “I went for a walk near my house and noticed about 10-11 cars in the church car park. I wondered what was going on because the church is closed.
“I was a bit miffed as the advice is for people not to travel to exercise. I’ve recently been ill with tonsillitis and I don’t know how it would affect me if I caught the virus.”
Other people have supported the move online.
Fiona Somerville said: “It’s not rocket science, stay at home. Walk or exercise close to home. Stay in the garden. No driving. It’s not a national holiday when the sun is shining”.
Nicola O’Hara added: “The point is, for daily exercise you don’t need a car to do that.
“Explore your local area, look for rainbows in windows, cycle a bike.
“Leave the car at home. Not rocket science. It really does disrespect those people fighting to keep us safe from this virus. Taking the car is selfish and unnecessary.”
Similar scenes were reported across the north and north-east over the weekend.
At Tyrebagger Woods, on the outskirts of Aberdeen, several cars could be seen parked next to signs advising that the space was “closed until further notice”.
And Diane Ross said the car park at Clachnaharry beside the Caledonian Canal in Inverness is often “full of cars”.
She added: “When will people get the message? I get that it’s not always possible to walk to a destination, but the majority obviously don’t have a thought that they could be putting more pressure on the NHS.
“You just never know when an accident could occur”.
But Emma Fraser said: “I don’t get why driving somewhere is different from loads of people walking in the same place because they literally cannot go anywhere else.”
The Forestry and Land Scotland website advises that fresh air and being outdoors benefits physical and mental health and well-being.
For local visitors, the majority of walking trails in national forests and land remain open, but all mountain biking trails and car parks are closed.
A spokesman for Forestry and Land Scotland added: “We have closed our car parks following government guidance about avoiding unnecessary travel to reduce the spread of Covid-19.
“The current government requirements are that people primarily stay at home and – when they must leave for one of a very few essential reasons – maintain social distance at all times.
“If you can get to one of our forests by walking, by bicycle or by wheelchair, you are very welcome – as long as you follow social distance guidelines.”
Smithton Free Church did not wish to comment.
