We are fortunate in having countryside at the back of our garden and a garden gate that takes us straight out there and Hubby can walk for miles without seeing a single person. I can't because walking on rough ground is impossible for me. I cannot see a problem with people driving to their nearest country walk, if they have the ability to do so, but not going to beauty spots. Unfortunately, a lot of people tend to make for popular country areas. We have noticed in the summer that visitors crowd near the entrance to popular beaches and don't walk another couple of hundred yards to where the beaches are almost empty. As you say humans are social animals and prone to herding together.