This beach will never be the same thanks to Harry Potter 'pilgrims'

In the Pembrokeshire region of southwest Wales lies a natural paradise: Freshwater West Beach, a sandy and rocky beach with cliffs, dunes, and a promenade, surrounded by nature. Its ecosystem is being threatened, but not by global warming...

Freshwater West Beach is the ideal place for surfers who have been coming here for years to ride the waves. However, the local tourist site warns visitors that it is only suitable for more experienced surfers due to strong currents.

Although it is quite well known among surfers, the beach was not a massive tourist destination until ten years ago. But then, something changed.

Freshwater West Beach became famous after appearing in two films: the first, Ridley Scott's 'Robin Hood', and the second, 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1.'

In the latter, released in 2010, the beach was used as the setting for Dobby's hut, the residence of a popular Harry Potter character. The hut was built on-site down to the smallest detail.

Image: 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets' screenshot

The beach's fame as a film location has helped local businesses take off and generate more than 11,000 jobs.

Image: Mitchell Orr / Unsplash

However, the environmental damage to the beach and its surroundings is beginning to show its severity.

Image: Jiamin Huang / Unsplash

The beach was the site where the death of the elf, one of the most beloved characters in the saga, was filmed. To commemorate him, Harry Potter fans visit this beach and have begun to build a “spontaneous” tomb for the character.

In photos of the place, you can see a wooden cross surrounded by a pile of stones painted with phrases such as 'Here lies Dobby, a free elf'. There are also socks: in the books and the film, the elf achieves freedom after receiving a sock as a gift.

The number of items that thousands of tourists deposit in the grave is worrying authorities. The National Trust Wales said that socks, costume jewelry, and bits of colored paint from the pebbles could enter the marine environment and the food chain, posing a risk to wildlife in the area.

In 2022, in an attempt to protect the area, the National Trust proposed moving the grave to another location, as the BBC recounts.

The institute conducted an online survey about the plan, which also involved the local population, and obtained up to 5,000 responses, according to the New York Times. However, the majority of voters opted to keep the tomb in the same place.

Freshwater West Beach isn't the only place being overrun by tourists and Harry Potter fans. The town of Glenfinnan, which has a population of about 150, is also suffering the consequences of mass tourism, according to the Scottish newspaper Daily Record.

Last year, more than 500,000 tourists set foot there to watch the train pass over the town's viaduct: it's the same bridge that the Hogwarts Express used to travel on.

Remember, the Hogwarts Express locomotive would take students to the famous wizarding school, according to the Harry Potter books and films.

Image: Ramsha Asad / Unsplash

While Dobby's grave is being saved on Freshwater West Beach, Harry Potter pilgrims are being asked not to add any new socks or stones to the pile, The Western Telegraph reports. That way, both the cultural artifact and the region's natural wealth can be protected as much as possible.

Image: Joshua Earle / Unsplash

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