John Woollam TrailOval Beach goers can now follow a scenic walking trail between the Saugatuck Chain Ferry landing on Park Street and the Lake Michigan attraction thanks to a familiar donor. The new John A. Woollam Nature Trail fulfills a long-held Saugatuck city vision of a path taking hikers off two-lane and winding Perryman Street — the lone east-west paved route to the beach — through woods to the popular park and back.
Woollam, a West Michigan native who became a Lincoln, Nebraska, professor, physicist, engineer and entrepreneur, has long taken interest in the area. The Woollam Foundation was among key donors making possible the City of Saugatuck’s $19-million acquisition in 2009 of the 171-acre Saugatuck Harbor Natural Area between Oval Beach and the Kalamazoo River channel. He was also a principal in the nonprofit Oval Beach Preservation Society’s $1.5-million purchase of 20.65 acres north of Perryman from Dunegrass developer Dune Ridge SA LP in 2017. The land has since been transferred to the city for public use. It will remain undeveloped as a public park with no improvements except primitive trails, viewing platforms, benches, steps, stairs or ropes to help pedestrians and erosion control structures, per deed terms. |
Park Street & Bliss Street
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Photos by Chris Clark