Get real, life isn’t fair. Nor will life ever be fair. I can’t afford a mansion and all the clothes in the world and to travel whenever, but I would never want to make it so no one else could. If life was fair and everyone could do the same things as everyone else. Life would be boring, no stories to tell.
anon
In NH when they rebuilt the Galehead Hut and renovated the Greenleaf Hut they had to make them handicapped accessible. For Galehead it stalled the project a little and cost thousands of dollars more but mostly because they had to redesign parts of it. Wheelchaired hikers have made it to both huts. Both huts have extemely difficult hikes for abled bodied hikers. This showed me that if a handicapped hiker really wanted to do this and had a lot of help it can be done with the trail as is. The AT or any other trail is not made to be easy, that would take the joy out of it. After the huts were changed they were easier for hikers too. Nice wide doors and such. However if you are able to fight your way up that 2,000 foot climb why would three stairs and a skinny door prove to be a problem? The bottom line is that not everyone can hike the AT and that includes most able bodied hikers. I like it that way.
Big B
I wanted to mention that there is a proto type wheel chair based on the technology that made the Segway Human Transporter possible, and as I recall, by the same inventor. It allows wheelchair bound individuals to effectively “stand,” go over previously impossible surfaces, and I do mean previously impossible.
Tests of the beta version are extremely promising. It’s just a matter of bringing the price down. There is a wheelchair bound journalist seen on NBC news magazines whose name escapes me for the moment. He tried it out along with some others, and some of them were moved to emotion by how good this thing was.
It may help the wheel chair bound experience more of nature.
Aeschylus
Hey Wheelman why dont you wait until the trail is covered in snow and assault with a snowmoble?That way you could “do” the trail and not change it significantly for others.
newb
I’ll take wheelman at his word that his post is sincere. If proven wrong, all I have is egg on my face and I can handle that.
There are trails (tho admittedly not one of the long distance National Scenic Trails) that you could probably do right now without altering yourself, waiting for technologies of the future, or most of all forever changing the nature of any trail. You can find these trails by doing some internet research. But none will be called the Appalachian Trail. Thankfully.
“Skyline”
I finally got time to look up a little more information on the subject of this post. According to Laurie Potteiger, Information Services Coordinator of the AT Conference, Harpers Ferry - “Although wheels are normally not allowed on the AT, a person who required the use of a wheelchair because of a disability would be permitted to traverse the A.T., with or without assistance. Our understanding for someone who is disabled the wheelchair is considered an extension of the person. If he/her traversed the A.T.'s entire length, they would be eligible to receive our 2,000-miler certificate and rocker, and would be listed in the Appalachian Trailways News.” Also, Jean Hoekwater at Baxter State Park said they follow the guidelines of the Wilderness Access Decision Tool, published by the Dept of Agriculture (see link below) which helps the wilderness recreation areas address accessibility concerns by the disabled. In summary, the Wilderness Act originally stated that no wheels of any kind were allowed in the wilderness areas. When the ADA went into effect in 1990, they added verbage that defined the issue. The Wilderness Act could no longer prohibit the use of a wheelchair, motorized or mechanical, in a wilderness area if an individual’s disability required it. But it added, no area shall be required to provide any form of accomodation, or to construct any facilities to modify any conditions of lands within the wilderness area. It’s main priority is the preservation of wilderness. The total Wilderness Access Decision Tool in its entirety: http://carhart.wilderness.net/docs/wild_access_decision_tool.pdf
Peep