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The Willapa River Trail stretches more than 5 miles
along the
Willapa
River
and Ellis Slough. The Trail is part of a 57 mile long trail
project entitled the Willapa Hills State Trail,
put together by the Washington State Parks Department. The
trail was built in two segments; the first was completed in
1996 and the second in the summer of 2001.
One can access the trail in a number of ways. The
Willapa River Trail runs along the western part of Highway 6
in
Raymond, and on Highway 101 it follows the River
from
Raymond into
South Bend.
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The
Trail embraces the unspoiled
Willapa
Bay estuary and is a part of the nearly 700 miles of
hiking trails managed by the Washington State Parks Department.
The State Parks acquired the 57-mile segment of railroad line
abandoned by the Burlington Northern Railroad Company and
transformed it into a part of the State’s cross-state trail system.
This segment of line constituted the only rail corridor
extending into Raymond and
South Bend. In 1995,
the City of
Raymond entered into an agreement with the
Washington
State Parks and Recreation Commission to develop the three
and a half mile stretch of line passing thru Raymond, to its
southerly terminus in
South Bend.
The trail was
widened, asphalted, and in 1996 dedicated exclusively for
non-motorized activity. An
improved spur off the main trail follows the original trestle,
running through the downtown
Riverfront
Park, and terminates at the derelict train bridge
that previously spanned the South Fork of the
Willapa
River. The
train bridge is not passable.
Therefore, the trail has been rerouted to cross the highway 101
bridge and rejoins the former railroad a short distance beyond the
opposite end of the old train bridge. A restroom is proposed for
construction near the trailhead in
South Bend with proposed completion by 2013.
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