As the coronavirus pandemic canceled or changed most Americans’ travel plans, people flocked to public lands in record numbers—many for the first time. Although these outdoor spaces are a vital haven to visitors trying to cope with the pandemic, land managers are finding that there’s a steep learning curve when it comes to these visitors’ responsible use.

“The visitation that we typically saw on the weekend, we were seeing during the week,” says Lawrence Lujan, a United States Forest Service (USFS) public affairs specialist. “And the visitation that we typically saw during a holiday weekend, like the Fourth of July, we were seeing on weekends.”

With increased use comes increased problems: Public land managers must contend with people hiking off-trail, driving or parking off-road, trampling vegetation, not packing out trash, setting illegal and abandoned campfires, and overcrowding.