Americans are exercise-deprived. As a result, our life expectancy is lower than in other developed nations and our chances for obesity-related diseases are higher.
No one knows this more than Dr. Wally Bigbee, a fierce advocate of the wonders of all things outdoors. Dr. Bigbee and his wife, Pat, spearheaded a three-year effort to create a new nature trail that utilized more than 100 volunteers working over 400 hours to make the trail a reality.
On Saturday, the trail was officially dedicated in honor of Pat and Wally, with a ribbon-cutting ceremony that drew an estimated 75 people to hike The Bigbee Trail together. This new trail connects Ramsey Park, Sally’s Alley and Rocket Park.
After thanking the volunteers, McMinnville’s Board of Mayor and Aldermen, and the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, Dr. Bigbee described the area.
“This is the only wooded park in the city,” said Bigbee. “We have baseball, softball and soccer parks, but no park with trees and bushes and shrubs and rabbits and birds. This is our city park.”
Jason Miller, natural areas program administrator from the Division of Natural Areas, led a two-mile nature walk. He stopped periodically and shared information about the landscape with the group.
Additionally, the trail has white rectangle trail markers, directional signs, educational stops, benches and picnic tables along the way. While there are some finishing touches to complete, the trail is ready to use for exercise, education, relaxation and better health.
“Now it’s not perfect,” said Bigbee. “There are some irregularities and as with any park, you always have to keep maintaining and changing things around. There is hope that in the future the City Board will change the trail to a hard surface greenway.”
Still, many from our community expressed nothing but gratitude and positive comments after completing the hike.
“If you know Wally, you know his passion for getting kids outside to promote health and wellness,” said Matt Feno, who brought his daughter Millie along. “He spends a lot of time doing trail maintenance all over the county and there’s not a better person to dedicate this trail to.”
“It’s beautiful and I’m thankful that we have it,” said Grace Reynolds. “I enjoyed being down by the water and learning about the different foliage from our guide, Jason.”
Added Linda Holder, “We had a great crowd and I learned that the shells in the river came from China and they’ll always be there.”
Bigbee urges everyone of all ages to come enjoy a hike. The Bigbee River Trail starts near Ramsey Park. One of the trail heads is located right after E. Main St. turns to Cedar St. and both roads can be accessed by E. Colville St. The other trail head is Rocket Park down by the river access. There are kiosks located in both locations.
McMinnville Parks and Recreation encourages all visitors to use their Facebook – Bigbee River Trail and to check-in on social media when using the park.
