Travelling with Disabilities - the National Parks

There are 394 national parks in the United States, and they are as varied as you can imagine.  There are large parks, small parks, rural parks, and urban parks.  They are also available to families of children with disabilities.   Parks include the National Mall in Washington, DC, with its monuments and surrounding museums, Yellowstone, Fort Sumter, Gettysburg, Mount Rushmore, and Abraham Lincoln’s birthplace.  There are parks of every possible size, shape, theme, and location.  With planning, all of them are accessible to people with disabilities.  They are also fun and educational, and they are perfect for families.

What many people do not know is that there is a special pass, the Golden Access Passport, that is available to people with disabilities.  It is a lifetime pass that free to citizens or permanent residents of the United States who are blind or permanently disabled.  This passport provides access to national parks, monuments, historic sites, recreation areas, and national wildlife refuges that charge an entrance fee.  The passholder and all accompanying passengers in a private car when admission is charged by vehicle; or spouse, children, or direct family members when individual admission is charged, are admitted free.  It also provides significant discounts for camping and other services. A person with a disability simply needs to go to any park, present some documentation of the disability, and request the pass.  It looks much like a credit card. 

I mention this because our son, Ian, has had one since we found out about it.  He was about 3 when we got it and it has been used extensively.  He keeps the card in his wallet, and when we roll up to a park entrance, he presents it to the ranger at the gate and in we go.  For a family with a child who has a disability, this can be a nice money saver. 

Now, are you wondering what you can do in the parks with a child with a disability?  Honestly, plenty.  For instance, I can’t remember a visitor center that does not have a captioned or accessible movies, or interactive exhibits of some sort.    The Park Service has done a very nice job of making many of their parks very accessible to visitors.  Even at places like Yellowstone, there are walkways and even accessible camp sites in some areas of the park.  Places like Old Faithful and the geyser areas have walkways around them.  Bathrooms, even when far afield, are wheelchair accessible.  Now, can you get to every spot in the park?  No, but you can access enough of the areas of the park to have a full and enriching visit.  That being said, these parks are still wild places, places where animals roam free.  Can you see them?  Yes, often from the car or from pull offs along the road.  You may not be going backcountry hiking, but neither do 99% of the other visitors.  There are no guarantees, but for the average visitor, having a disability does not prevent you from having as good a visit as any non-disabled visitor.  And who knows, your family may actually learn something and have fun. 

Like anything else, do some pre-planning.  If you camp, don’t arrive and expect to get a campsite, much less a campsite that is accessible.  Contact the park in advance, make a reservation.  Research the park you are interested in visiting.  Find out if there are areas that may not be accessible or things you need to be aware of.  However, that is just basic planning and common sense. 

Bottom line, there are tons of National Parks and they all have different focuses.  I am sure you can find one or more that suit your and your family’s tastes.  They are enjoyable and educational places, and often quite accessible to those with disabilities.  Give it a try.  We have, and we continue to be surprised by what we find.