To a guy from the northside of Phoenix, the east valley might as well be in another state. There’s towns over there I have never even been to in 35+ years. So after shooting a fencing camp in Mesa two weeks ago I went by the Gilbert Water Park. I’ve heard of it from numerous people and wanted to see whats the story.

Peggy Thomas

One of those people is Peggy Thomas. Twenty-five years ago she was probably one of the first quads who rolled into my hospital room. Not too long after that she let me fly her para-sail off into the wild blue yonder. And due a slight malfunction, I literally almost did so, but that’s another story. These days she’s big time into birding, or bird watching, and she publishes an informative blog about birding for people who roll around (www.birdingwithoutbarriers.org). So we met up for an afternoon jaunt and I got to learn about the various birds that reside at the park.

The place is commonly called the Gilbert Water Ranch which is the short version for “The Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch.” The 110 acre compound consists of seven large water basins used to recycle effluent water. Next to a nearby library is one urban lake that features a nice walking bridge. This is the one lake stocked for fishing. The place gets five big stars for wheelchair accessibility. Its got good parking, plenty of shade, and many miles of wide smooth paths to roll around.

One of my favorite spots is the artificial creek they’ve got flowing through the middle of the park. It’s well designed for wheelchairs to forge in a few places, and nobody gets uptight if your pooch wonders in to one of the little pools for a cool down. By advised that amongst those casually enjoying this great place is some serious ‘birders’ and photographers who are busy holding very still and being quiet for a reason, so consider turning of the cell phone and practice some quite rolling when you get deeper into the park.

And finally, the park has a rare treat for wheelers. A roll-in astronomy observatory called the Gilbert Rotary Centennial Observatory (GRCO) that features an accessible 16″ telescope. We observed Mars near dusk and the astronomy club members that maintains the telescope were plenty happy to help us squeeze two chairs in to get a photo.

www.riparianinstitute.org

www.eastvalleyastronomy.org

Thanks, Peg!

Gilbert, Arizona Offers a Great Park For Wheelers and Birders is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

Tempe Lake is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

Its late November and in the high 60′s in Phoenix, so I decided to find somewhere warmer. I see Lake Havasu is predicted to be mid-70′s so I packed another pair of shorts and headed west for the 2 hour drive.

Forty years ago some clever people in Lake Havasu, Arizona bought the London Bridge for $3 million from London. They spent another $7 million getting it back to Lake Havasu, now it’s a pretty cool place to visit. Lake Havasu is on the Arizona California border. The lake has a reputation for big time lake parties and some awesome boats. We visited over the Thanksgiving weekend. Not many parties but plenty of seriously fast (and sexy) boats.

The bridge goes across a 1-mile long channel which has beaches on both side. Above the beaches is a 5-star urban trail that goes from the city’s Rotary Park, along the shoreline, up and over the bridge and then down the coast of the island. What I like is that its got a little bit of everything. The park has a great beach. The sand is compact enough that I could get the ol’ power chair to get right on the shoreline. The palm trees add some tropic flavor and the lake and mountains are very scenic. We stopped and watched the kids race the RC cars at a cool little track.

Click on the photo for notes, or see larger photos at Flickr

As you approach the bridge, there’s numerous shops and bistros on the path. Beneath the bridge is a stage where music events occur. Now here is where it gets a bit tricky. In order to get to the island you cross the bridge, which means you have to get up to street level and the one path that is obvious is way too steep. We found a much easier detour by the tennis courts of the London Bridge Resort. You have to cut through their parking lot for a 1/4 mile but it seems like the best route.

Going across the bridge is easy and scenic. When you get to the island, take the sidewalk around the Javalina Cafe (ok food, nice view) and head to the lobby of the Heat hotel. We met the general manager who said they allow PwD’s to use the elevator to get down to the shore. There’s another route but this was easy. From here the path runs south toward London Bridge Beach. This is a really nice path the goes past a great dog park. During our visit they were working on the path past this point, but there’s a great looking park that goes down to the end of the island. One other path is located on the island itself. This is basically a 3-mile bike path that would be great for exercise. It takes you all the way around the island.

Where To Stay
We stayed at The Nautical Inn and really liked it. They have 3 rooms that are ADA wheelchair accessible. Only one has a roll-in shower. The rooms have a great view of the lake. Whats really cool is they have a path leading down to the beach. If you look close you can see my tracks. The restaurant is accessible, and the tiki bar is really fun.

We also visited Heat Hotel, which is right next to the London Bridge and has a room with roll-in shower that has a great view. Heat is definitely a eclectic festive location and the GM tells me the parties slow down around 2pm, so dont expect less. They have two levels of outdoor bars and good music, so its definitely meant for a fun time.

As for fishing, I had hoped to visit the Havasu Springs Pier (Wiki info)which is located 10 miles south of town and supposedly accessible, but we ran out of time.

London Bridge – Lake Havasu is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

Its not too often you visit a 100-year old schoolhouse and find a wheelchair-accessible trail out back. And I’m not talking about your garden variety semi-accessible trail either. This may be one of the best short trails in Arizona.

Groom Creek is 6 miles south of Prescott. It’s at 6,200 elevation so we’re in Ponderosa pine tree country. The Groom Creek Schoolhouse was originally built about 1896. Today the stone building is not open to the public, but is used by the Prescott National Forest as an administrative site, although I found a site that said it can be rented for group outings.

The first thing you notice is that it is very peaceful and quiet here. Some time back, some pretty ambitious people from the local Lion’s Club put in a 1,500’ long asphalt path the wonders through the pines. What makes this a great path is that these people didn’t just find the flattest patch of earth nearby and slap some asphalt about and the call it accessible. They plotted out a very scenic path that takes you in and around some tall pines and very large boulders. It’s boggling to think how these big rocks got here. And the designers didn’t take shortcuts either. The path has two very sturdy wooden bridges that span a creek bed.

One very interesting feature of this interpretive trail is the molded signs for blind folks. The signs basically have a miniature statue of the native animals. People can feel the animal to better understand the animal’s appearance. There is a squirrel, bird, and deer depicted. The last sign is of a mountain lion, and I couldn’t help but imagine a real cat perched up atop one of the nearby boulders just watching us feel the cat. I got the feeling I was being watched.

Today I brought a power chair which traversed the trail easily. There is a number of spots along the oval which are steep enough to give a manual chair user some difficulty. But this is a well planned trail for everyone’s needs. The trail has logs positioned as guard rails and there is plenty of flat areas and benches for catching your breath.

This trail is a real gem. Arizona has other trails that are more scenic, but this quarter mile trail really allows you to get close to nature. We saw a red headed woodpecker and some beautiful Blue Jays in the trees. We watched two squirrels chase each other, and there were rabbits scurrying around everywhere.

For directions visit Recreation.gov.

Groom Creek Schoolhouse Trail is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

I have witnessed the beast. And today it beat me.

Thumb Butte Loop Trail #33 is a 2-mile loop on the west side of Prescott. Most trail organizations consider this a moderately challenging trail. There’s no wheelchair access mentioned.

In a wheelchair this loop has a pucker factor of 10+. It’s the most challenging trail I’ve tried. Its steep! As in black-diamond holy-poop ski slope steep! Today, I made it half way and opted to return to base. I think it is surmountable but I want to get a helmet, some elbow pads and an extra person to spot me when things start sliding towards the edge. Towards some pain.

This is the trail head. I you look in the back you will see the peak that you will climb. It's one mile up, and one mile back. And if you think it's seep going up, wait until you start coming down!

Recently I purchased a used Quickie V-521. Jeff, chief mechanic at Leeden Wheelchairs in Phoenix installed the biggest batteries available and some beefy rear tires. It’s a light chair with some pretty good torque. Not much suspension (a Roho cushion helps) but she gets high marks for this rock crawl.

The trail is a loop. The trail leading up the west slope starts out paved and steep. The earth has pushed up the asphalt in 2 places that create some difficult speed bumps. Hit’em too slow, you wont make it or perhaps flip if you apply any addition power. Hit them too fast and you may nose dive. I found the best way was to crest them and immediately angle the chair towards the side then angle your self down the back side and turn it hard back up hill.

The asphalt ends pretty quick and the trail turns to dirt, rock and gravel. The parks web site states the trail is s a steady grade of 9%, 3% cross slope, 4-foot minimum width of packed gravel punctuated by gravel water bars with dips. I was motoring up the gravel pretty good. I’d lean forward to improve my center of gravity but if I went too far, the back tires would begin to slip a bit. I don’t think I ever came close to flipping backwards. I could definitely feel the motors being stressed.

Pictures dont offer enough perspective to show you how steep this is trail is for a wheelchair. In the background you can see some hikers.

Half way up we came to some lateral ruts from water flow. These got me. I hit the first rut and slid off the path and realized I needed to take some precautions. Next time I may let the air pressure out a bit in the rear. I’m going to experiment at home with low pressure and see if I can avoid pulling the tire of the rim. But for sure a bike helmet, gloves and elbow pads are in order. I think a 6-8’ rope with a hook would be smart. A spotter could hook it to the high side of the chair and pull you back if things stated going in the wrong direction.

Coming down is really the hair raising part. Free-spinning front caster have a tendency to head towards the lowest point and damn if that isn’t the lower edge of the trail. Turning requires power and it gets dicey quick. So we backed down the steep ones which was actually pretty uneventful. Karla spotted me and was mostly accurate in telling me which way to turn.

The east slope trail is paved the entire way. The catch is the path is a steady grade of 12-18%. I opted for the west side initially to see if the chair could muscle up 12% even. Having made it up 12% on the west trail, 18% slope sounds almost crazy. But given its all asphalt, it may be a better way to ascend the Butte and avoid the ruts. I tried the first 100 feet or so and again opted to return with a helmet.

Even if you don’t attempt the trail, this is a very accessible, clean park to check out. The park has a number of accessible picnic tables and ramadas. There is a road that goes out back where camping is allowed and I forgot to head back there.

If anyone else ever tries this trail in a chair, please let me know. I might even want to meet you there.

Click here for more about wheelchair access in Prescott.

Thumb Butte Park is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

I’ve been hanging around Prescott lately. When it is 110° in Phoenix, it is about 90° in Prescott. And it seems pretty easy to find somewhere nearby that is even a little bit cooler. Lynx Lake has a wheelchair accessible trail, and a good picnic area. I have been to Watson Lake once. It does not seem to be as accessible, but it’s the biggest and perhaps the most scenic.

Coming back from the Groom Creek area, we spotted a sign for Goldwater Lake. This is a Prescott city park. It is even smaller than Lynx Lake but has some accessible features that make it a fun place to roll about.

One feature I always look for when assessing lakes and rivers and oceans, is the ability to get right down on the water. To me, even if I don’t want to get in the water, I’d like to know I can. And this is what I really like about Goldwater Lake. Basically you drive right down on a small beach where the planners smartly created the accessible parking lot, and from here you can wheel around. The sand or dirt is compact enough to allow anyone to roll right down into the water.

The lake has a new fishing pier that’s accessible. Strangely, unlike Lynx Lake, the planners did not lower the side rail in a few spots to allow wheelers to cast or lean over to pull in a whopper without having to lift it over the entire rail. So thumbs down for fishing access.

Besides the beach and the pier, the rest of the park is pretty basic stuff. Good access to picnic tables, plenty of ramadas and good w/c bathroom. This a good dog park too.

The Bannor Creek Trail goes about half way around the lake. I’m not too optimistic that it is accessible but I’ll be back to try it someday.

Goldwater Lake is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

Arizona’s Most Accessible Lake Offers Kayaking

Arguably one of the best places to get out and enjoy metro-Phoenix’s weather is at Tempe Lake. My previous entry does not do justice to the south side of the lake and I hope to improve it soon. But one little secret is the north side marina. Not many people know it exists, and even fewer know how to get there.

The marina consists of probably 20 slots for small sailboats and pontoon boats. It is also where many water-related competitions and sports organize their events, and there is an excellent accessible floating pier. Adding to the marina is i’ts impeccable landscaping, excellent parking, access bathrooms and plenty of shade. There is no concession stands but it is an excellent picnic area. The concrete path around most of the lake is the longest trail I’ve found in Arizona yet.

My recent visit was to participate in the city of Mesa’s adaptive kayaking program. Mesa (Arizona Disabled Sports) and Phoenix (Daring Adventures) seem to be the only two cities with well-organized recreation for wheelers. Tonight was our first session in the lake. Susan Rossi who heads up the program has obviously done this before, and she has a good crew of volunteers and we are in the water on time, and without commotion.

My first observation about kayaking is that it is fun and I am out of shape. Apparently lifting a camera has done little to improve my cardiovascular performance. Rowing is a motion that comes rather natural and does not have any heavy impact on any portion of your body. Its relaxing except that when you are trying to keep up with kids half your age and your heart and lungs begin to feel like you are paddling uphill.

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Tempe Lake Marina is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

In my travels, I am always asking people if they know about anywhere accessible, and on two occasions I have heard mention of an accessible lake up in Pinetop, Arizona. I know a little bit about Pinetop as I have driven through there a few times and could never find the lake. On one trip I noticed a sign for the Pinetop-Lakeside Interpretive Trail. It caught my eye because there was a big wheelchair-dude logo on the sign. Its worth visiting.

This week we traveled to northeastern Arizona to visit the Hidden Meadow Ranch, and so I googled for an accessible lake in Pinetop. Sure enough it exists, but there really are no signs on the main drag through Pinetop and definitely no wheelchair-logos to catch my eye. But the lake does exist, and it is a great place for wheelers to roll about.

Woodland Lake is basically right in the middle of town. The lake has no dedicated website, nor is it easy to find. I get the feeling the locals are keeping this place a secret. Good idea.

This is your basic 18-acre man-made urban lake. It is stocked with trout and bass and electric motor boats are allowed. Around the lake are picnic tables, a boat ramp tennis courts, volleyball, and playgrounds and all that stuff. But what makes Woodland Lake a must visit destination is the accessible trail going all around the lake.

What I liked about the trail is that it is 99% flat. This is casual strolling and rolling. The path itself is made of asphalt and plenty wide. A portion of the trail takes you across a shady hillside covered in pine trees, and another portion takes you across the earth mound damn which allows you to see quite a distance. The last portion is also in the pines but it takes you around by the shallow waters which are heavily vegetated and home to many birds. All along the way are rest areas, but I did not see any water supply. I estimate the circumference of the lake is a tad more than 1 mile.

So here is the odd part about this circular trail. Near one of the entrances to the park is a miniature covered bridge. This baby has some very steep ramps. ADA-enthusiasts will blow a gasket when they see the bridge entrance and exit ramps. And directly behind this bridge is a 50-foot section of the trail which is way too steep as well.

On this trip I brought along a power chair for some off-road exploring/photography I was doing elsewhere. So I happened to be in a power chair that handled the steep trail and the bridge without a problem. But in my trusty manual chair, and by myself, neither would be accessible. No big deal, because I would be perfectly happy to turn around and go back the way I came. Maybe even a few times.

Bring your tackle because the lake has an accessible fishing pier for wheelers too. Dogs on leashes are also welcome.

In my research, I learned that the lake is federally owned and locally managed and that this relationship is potentially going to expire. It sure would be a shame if this lake somehow became unavailable to the public. Pinetop is no exception to the urban sprawl Arizona is experiencing, and this lake is a true treasure.

I’m going to geo-tagged my Flickr photos very accurately so anyone can zoom in on my map and get some perspective about where the lake is. Or, another novel idea is to just to ask someone in Pinetop. But I just could not bring myself to this approach. Hint: From White Mountain Boulevard/AZ 260, turn in about a half mile on Woodland Lake Road at the Chevron Station. Pinetop-Lakeside Parks and Recreation (928/368-6700).

Woodland Lake is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

Prescott’s Lynx Lake has great wheelchair accessibility.  Prescott  is just a mere 80 miles north of Phoenix heading towards Flagstaff. And Lynx Lake is 10 minutes out of town. The lake is managed by the National Parks. Its a small lake by any standard, but when its 108 degrees in Phoenix and you are enjoying afternoon showers and 69 degrees, the lake can be the size of a bathtub and I’m still enjoying it.

At the south end of the lake the lake is an excellent ramp leading out to a wooden floating dock. The dock has lowered rails for we sitting fishers. This is actually an exceptional picnic area for wheelers. It is flat with paths everywhere, and easy access to bathroom facilities. The picnic tables are covered and even the barbecues are accessible. The parking is perfect.

Sarah True is a volunteer at New Horizons Independent Living Center in Prescott. She wrote me about the lake and also mentioned the path leading back to the cafe and bait shop was a challenging dirt path for wheelers.

From the Lake, Trail 311 starts of pretty flat. Its a narrow asphalt trail that follows the west bank of the lake. We’re over 5000′ elevation and the inclines come pretty quick. Almost immediately I was huffing and puffing. I am calling this a black diamond trail. If you ski, you’ll know why. It’s not that the trail is too steep, if that it is rather narrow in places, and the drop-off is not something you want to experience. In many places it is probably a 30 foot drop right into the lake. In-shape paras like Sara will find this a challenging path. Pushing a manual chair, this old quad had to get plenty of assistance, and there were some corners where my breaking abilities were not enough. I plan to come back and try this path in a powered chair. 24 volts may not be enough to get me back the 1-mile trail, and those same corners may make me nervous as with one wrong flick of my wrist and I’m going to be in the lake for sure. This is definitely a trail where you utilize the buddy system.

Enough with the precautions. This trail is very scenic, and a great place to escape. The entire one-mile path goes along the lake shore, hence the name. And in three spots they have created some great concrete overlooks where you can fish. There’s 2 or 3 wooden bridges as well. We saw birds and a few squirrels.

We made it as far as the boat rental location (no accessible boats) and turned around with looming rainclouds approaching. You can see a path goes around most, if not all of the lake and it may not be paved. Lynx gets high marks. Its in the cool pines and is dog-friendly so we’ll be back.

Lynx Lake Offers Great Wheelchair Accessibility is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.

Up until recently I thought the only two parks offering any kind of wheelchair accessibility in Sedona were Slide Rock State Park and Red Rock State Park. This changed when I visited the little known Crescent Moon Picnic Area. I was very impressed. It is not perfect, but if you have some tenacity and some friends you are in for a real treat.

First off, Crescent Moon is not easy to find. You will not see any signs that jump out at you. But most local maps show its location. The park is surrounded by suburban homes on the west side of Sedona. To enter the park, there is an $8 per car fee.

The park consists of two concrete pathways that offer nice flat wheelchair access. They are a little narrow but there is plenty of shoulder room for walkers to use as a wheelchair passes. The first path starts in a couple of places around the first parking area you come to. This path ends at the creek’s edge. The only problem here is that the sidewalk is 10 feet above the water level and 20 feet back. There is enough trees and bushes to block what would be a beautiful view, and unfortunately there is no way to get right to the water.

If you continue down the park’s road, you come to the final parking area. In front of you is a huge grassy area the size of a soccer field, and on the horizon is perhaps the best view from anywhere of Cathedral Rock. It is truly a postcard view. The concrete path goes around the perimeter of the huge field, and on the very far side you can hear the creek in the distance. There is a dirt path heading down towards the water, and this is where the adventure begins.

The first 30′ of the path down to the creek is pretty steep. We traversed it backwards with Karla working as a human brake. From here, you are surrounded by large shade trees and immediately feel a cool breeze. The path is now dirt and sand with a lot of a tree roots for speed bumps. We pushed about 100 feet east along the path and came to an open area exposing the creek. Finally, a place in Sedona where a wheelchair can get near to Oak Creek.

By no means is it easy to get down the last 20 feet to the water from here. It is loose rock and a little steep but we finally made it to Oak Creek. From here, the creek is flowing across flat rocks and we were able to roll across. Boy is it worth it. Sitting in the creek looking east is a gorgeous view of Cathedral Rock. Looking west is a small waterfall that opens into a beautiful pool. We swam and relaxed in the sun and shade for the rest of the day.

We were highly motivated to make friends because we knew that getting back up the creek bed was going to require assistance. Crossing the creek in a manual wheelchair is actually not too difficult if you scout out a descent path. The water is maybe 10 inches deep and the surface of the rock is quite smooth in places. No doubt this accessibility will vary depending on the rain fall, but in mid-May, we survived the raging rapids and reached the other side.

So here is my recap of Sedona: Slide Rock State Park offers a nice view of the gorgeous slide rocks below where able bodied people can enjoy the water. It really is not accessible. Red Rock State Park has a great path for wheelchairs. You can explore and see some pretty scenic views but like Slide Rock, a wheelchair can not get near the water.

Crescent Moon offers a spectacular view, good paths and the chance to get a little wet. Its the latter that makes this place a winner in my book.

Visit My Sedona Flickr Set.

Crescent Moon Picnic Area is a post from: Wheelchair Arizona eMag Accessing Arizona.