At Cuyahoga Valley, AJ made his standard request for Junior Ranger books. The ranger offered a more hands-on learning style if that was better for anyone in our group. She didn't single Teddy out, but she recognized that Teddy may not be able to do the typical workbook and provided that option. She didn't automatically assume and give that as the only option, but she gave a choice that might work better for us.
It was a really neat set of cards with different activities to do throughout the park, with hands-on learning that could be done by younger ages or people who don't do well with written activities. It's such a great idea!
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| If they change the name on these, it's a darn near perfect idea. |
She also politely inquired about how accessible one of the trailheads was due to construction because she observed us pushing Teddy in his chair. They have to keep safety during construction as the top priority and had made some changes to make it more accessible, yet it still wasn't truly accessible. She appreciated knowing, so she could inform other visitors as well as management.
The other really cool thing we saw was a variety of adaptive equipment at Indiana Dunes to make beach access possible for people with limited mobility. If you've ever tried to push any wheelchair or stroller on sand, you know how challenging that is. They had several options to give people the ability to more fully experience the parks.
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| A variety of devices allow better access for more people. |
The reality is there will always be a balance between accessibility and the component of leaving our parks natural, which means that all trails cannot be wheelchair accessible. I love to see, though, where parks make the outdoors available to people of all abilities.
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