Walking trails remain open during Covid-19 pandemic

BOWLING GREEN Ky.- Covid-19 has made once lively places like Mammoth Cave National Park and various city of Bowling Green parks, silent.

While Mammoth Cave isn’t offering cave tours to visitors, the walking trails remain open for the community to enjoy.

“Throughout the national parks, where it is possible by state, federal and local public health guidelines to leave our areas open to the public, we are attempting to do that to the best of our abilities,” said Mammoth Cave public information officer Molly Schroer.

Those seeking adventure on Mammoth Cave’s walking trails will encounter a specific type of mushroom this time of the year.

“Springtime is the time for morel mushrooms, so we’re starting to see more people in the park who are out looking for morel mushrooms,” Schroer said.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website, parks and walking trails are essential for both physical and mental health benefits.

Now, all three of Bowling Green’s public golf courses have their walking trails open as well. Bowling Green Mayor Bruce Wilkerson said keeping the trails is beneficial.

“It’s very difficult to close our parks, and we’ve had to do that because of people tending to congregate there. We don’t have a problem with people and their families walking on the greenways as long as they keep distance between themselves,” Wilkerson said.

Whether it’s Mammoth Cave’s trails or any of the local golf courses, Wilkerson said it’s essential that these resources are enjoyed responsibly.

“Right now, we don’t see a reason to discontinue that. If things change and people start congregating, then we’ll have to take the same steps there that we did at the regular parks,” Wilkerson said.

The three golf courses in Bowling Green include Riverview, Paul Walker and Crosswinds.