July is Disability Pride Month – celebrated since 1990 when the American with Disabilities Act or ADA was passed into law which prohibits discrimination based on disability. It’s the “ADA” in ADA compliance – a regulation that creates equal access to public spaces such as sidewalks, parks, libraries and government offices. It also extends to all our public lands -like Joshua Tree National Park here in the hi-desert , and state parks like Mount San Jacinto down the hill.
That means a parks’ ranger stations, bathrooms, museums and light nature trails all need to be ADA compliant as well – giving everyone equitable access to information and facilities that allow us to get up close with nature.
But the closer to nature you get, the more varied the terrain – meaning that its up to the hiker with the disability to decide if the trail is right for them. On Joshua Tree National Park’s website, they have a page with information on accessibility for its visitor centers, Nature trails, campgrounds and other facilities. Each feature and trail also has a description of the general terrain you may encounter, but any specifics regarding what you might encounter in the park should be directed at the always helpful Park Rangers.
Photo: NPS / Brad Sutton
The Cholla Gardens at the Joshua Tree National Park has an elevated boardwalk that allows folks who need even terrain to get up close to some of the best blooms in the basin in spring. That features is at the top of an AllTrails list of the best wheelchair accessible spots in the park – Key’s View is on there, too.
Read: AllTrails list of best Wheelchair Friendly Trails in Joshua Tree National Park
The California State Park newsletter highlighted Mount San Jacinto for it’s interpretive panels with touchable elements that they say “provides those with visual impairments a way to get a sensory experience of their conifer forests.”
I also spoke with State Park Aid David Diaz who said “Stone Creek has a 1-mile Panoramic trail that is ADA-graded and ADA-accessible.”
I checked out their website to see exactly what that meant – and found helpful information on that trail’s average width, terrain type, and elevation changes. They also have a separate page with accessibility information for all the state parks in California – and accessibility information for the trails coming up the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway side, too.
Our public lands were created to preserve the nature contained on them. It gives us access to a wilderness that existed long before we arrived here. Thanks to the ADA and the national and state parks that are working to create that equitable access – more people can get closer to that wilderness and all that it contains.
Read more on the Americans with Disabilities Act
Accessibility Guidebook for Outdoor Recreation and Trails (PDF Link)
