Mobility Mark and his accessibility assessment
Pointing disabled visitors to accessible outdoor adventures In Santa Clara County parks - a volunteer service by Mark Hehir aka “Mobility Mark”
About Mobility Mark
Mark has always felt a special connection with nature and in his earlier years did a lot of hiking and camping. After he became disabled in 1996 from a form of muscular dystrophy, he wasn’t sure if he would ever be able to have that bond with nature again.
Fortunately, there are many accessible parks and trails in the San Francisco Bay Area and Santa Clara County parks. For several years now, Mark has been enjoying nature hikes by wheelchair on many of the Bay Area and Santa Clara County trails.
To help disabled people find (or rekindle) their love of nature, and to help identify accessible trails and outdoor adventures, Mark began writing reviews and making a video of each trail that he visited. Mark shares his adventures on his wheelchair blog.
One of Mark’s main goals in life is to help make parks and trails more inclusive for the physically challenged so that they can also enjoy nature. To further this goal, Mark became a County volunteer in January 2015. He is working with the Department’s ADA coordinator and the trails crew to assess various Santa Clara County trails for conditions to help point mobility impaired visitors to accessible trails and facilities. Some trails will be relatively flat with easy access and perfect for those with mobility devices. Others will be more challenging for those that love to get deeper into nature - as Mobility Mark does!
Happy wheeling!