Exploration in our own backyard has reached "unprecedented" levels, says the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services, with visitation to landmarks like Mount Canobolas exploding in winter.
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Over the June long weekend, a traditionally busy time already for Orange, a whopping 6200 people visit Mount Canobolas.
That's up significantly when compared to the usual peak Easter visitation period for the mountain, when around 4000 usually visit the area.
Just west of town, the Borenore Karst Conservation Reserve also proved a popular spot to explore on the June long weekend.
It received 5100 day visitors over the three days, which is nearly 25 per cent of its annual visitation.
Around the region, camping areas in Nangar, Weddin Mountain and Goobang - which all fall under the NPWS' Country NSW zone which includes the Central West area - have also reported being "very busy".
This surge in visitation has been state-wide, with national parks reporting a surge in visits across NSW as people jump on any opportunity they can to escape the coronavirus pandemic.
A recent NPWS report indicates stays at campgrounds and campsites across the state were up by more than a third in July compared to the same month last year.
"Local staff have called the level of visitation this winter as unprecedented," a NSW NPWS spokesperson said.
"Campgrounds have been extremely busy compared to previous years, as have walking tracks.
"Campground bookings are now online in keeping with COVID requirements."
A NPWS spokeswoman told the Sydney Morning Herald last week that the service was monitoring busy precincts and temporarily limiting access if visitor numbers become high, in order to keep the community safe.
"We understand the importance of spending time in nature, and we encourage visitors to choose lower-visitation parks where possible," she said.
From June this year, all reopened campgrounds and campsites have been required bookings to be made before visiting due to the Government's ongoing efforts to counter the coronavirus pandemic.
But the boom in visitor numbers has been welcome for a lot of the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Services locations, after bushfire devastated a number of regions throughout summer.
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