by Darla Greven
This summer my husband and I wanted to find a way to go camping in Yosemite National Forest. Although we used to love camping, we hadn't tried any outdoor overnights since my injury 10 years ago. We didn’t pull down our old tent and camp stove, but we found some great adaptive alternatives that got me camping and enjoying the great outdoors again with my family.
My Kodak moment… here I am out in spectacular nature; triumphing
over obstacles that could keep me from this beautiful place, because of my
impressive willpower! Right? No. Unfortunately, my willpower can’t
change the fact that real forest floors and true wilderness don’t conform to my
new list of special needs.
What I’ve learned I can do is work hard and explore my own
resources and push my own boundaries to find ways I can enjoy the things I
have always loved, like the outdoors. Since I began living with spinal cord
injury, paralysis and pain years ago, it so much more challenging; but
I am finding that it’s totally worth the effort!
The viewpoints along the way
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On our ten-day road trip last month we drove 1,600 miles from our
home near Portland, Oregon to Lake Tahoe, California, then to Yosemite National
Park. On the left, in the distance is Half Dome, a famous granite landmark.
On the right, I’m with my grandson, using a move I saw on “Pushgirls” -
lifting myself up onto my armrest for a minute to see over the wall.
It actually worked!
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The detailed planning to include my special needs, the phone
calls checking on accessibility of lodgings, careful packing and counting
medical supplies, etc., is not easy. But being out in spectacular nature with
loved ones, for me, it doesn’t get any better than this!
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This is how we travelled. My chair fits in the back of our car, even with a passenger, and pulling our small trailer doesn’t affect our great gas
mileage much. That’s an accessible outhouse in front of the car. I’m probably
the only tourist who got excited and took a picture of it! Unfortunately it was
just as stinky, but hey, it worked!
Camping in a Tent Cabin
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We remembered camping years ago in Yosemite’s “tent cabins”
which are cheaper than a room in their lodges, but more structured than camping
in a regular tent. We were happy to discover they have added some accessible
ones that don’t have the front stairs like all the old ones and are right next
to the spacious ADA family bathroom. They have a wide, flat entry door, a
regular height double and single bed with just enough wheelchair room between
them and wooden floors, which make them so much easier to move around in than
any accessible motel rooms we’ve stayed in. PS: I love opening doors myself.
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This is just a small section of the awesome views just outside
our tent cabin! Since there’s a combination of paved, packed dirt and loose
dirt, I used my Freewheel, (which is the large front wheel that attaches to my footplate and takes the place
of the small front castors) and my husband helped me push through some parts.
Because of the bears, there’s no cooking allowed in the tent cabins, so we ate
at a variety of casual places, all accessible. Not having to cook saved more
time for adventures, especially since all the basics I need to do take more
time when I’m traveling.
In my able-bodied days we would hike, backpack and explore the
wilderness here, but now I find there is enough beauty to discover just by
pushing around the Valley floor and looking up! The massive granite walls and waterfalls
that are visible from the accessible sidewalks and shuttle buses can keep you
busy for days even without hiking. But if that’s not enough, there’s also a big
swimming pool with a chairlift (and an accessible shower in the locker room), a
handcycle available with bike rentals and some boardwalk paths through gorgeous
meadows. Here’s an excellent webpage for more specific information about
traveling in Yosemite in a wheelchair:
“Enjoying the steep push up the Vernal Falls Trail” or “The day
I destroyed my wheelchair gloves”
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Most every push of this two-mile round trip, 400-ft. climb took the
determination and strength of both me and my husband. Most of the other hikers
stared or encouraged us, many offered to help, and some pleaded with us to turn
back or to be careful, but we finally reached the bridge with a view of the
waterfall. This is definitely not an accessible hike, but because it was
paved most of the way and wide enough and we both wanted to conquer doing
something we had done in our pre-injury days, we did it! The crazy part was
pushing up and rolling down such a steep incline that neither of us could have
managed alone. My gloves were my brakes all the way down and even with my
husband holding onto the back of the chair, my strong hands worked so hard they
eventually started cramping and we had to pull over and wedge the front wheel
against some rocks that kept the chair from speeding down the hill. Other times
we’d just stop to marvel at the view and take pictures. Okay, I admit, maybe
sometimes it is the willpower!
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“We made it!” Our grandson’s hands added just the extra power we
needed at the end. When we were near the top, thinking of giving up, he
continued the steep uphill to scout out how far we had to go. He came back
saying 424 steps! (As we began again, exhausted, we kept asking him, “How big were
your steps again?”)
Driving out of beautiful Yosemite Valley, I soaked in the views
one last time. Summer is almost over and I’m home from our ten-day road trip,
swamped with things to put away and to catch up on.
Our next bigger adventure is right around the corner: three weeks win Europe! Being a tourist in a wheelchair and with the other complications of spinal cord injury that make life and travel so difficult, I’m a bit nervous. Am I crazy?! Yes, I think I just might be. But that’s just me being me. A drunk driver made finding adventures so much harder, but with planning, and hard work, I’ll be taking more of those “triumphant” shots of me in glorious places. It’s still possible and it’s still worth it, (as long as there’s an accessible bathroom at the end of a paved trail J).
Our next bigger adventure is right around the corner: three weeks win Europe! Being a tourist in a wheelchair and with the other complications of spinal cord injury that make life and travel so difficult, I’m a bit nervous. Am I crazy?! Yes, I think I just might be. But that’s just me being me. A drunk driver made finding adventures so much harder, but with planning, and hard work, I’ll be taking more of those “triumphant” shots of me in glorious places. It’s still possible and it’s still worth it, (as long as there’s an accessible bathroom at the end of a paved trail J).
Factors that make travel like this possible for me:
- Accessible bathrooms and motels along our travel route
- Accessible tent cabins in Yosemite
- Many paved and packed dirt trails throughout the valley
- Shuttle buses with ramp and wheelchair section
- Strong arms and a “Freewheel” to go on dirt, grass and broken pavement http://www.gofreewheel.com/
- A strong companion who can help push me up and down occasional stairs, steep hills, etc.
- Money to eat out
- Ability to drive long hours in the car
- Flexibility with my personal care
I’m also grateful to any disabled “pioneers” who have travelled
before me and paid the price of time, angst and energy to push for ADA
compliancy upgrades to our National Parks.
To read about my upcoming trip to
Europe, see more pictures, and other stories I write about living through
grief, disability and pain and finding the joy, check out my blog at
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