View Full Version : Beyond Boundaries
SGT Rock
10-13-2005, 19:44
Not really another trail, but hiking related...
I was flipping through the channels last night and found this one on the Discovery Channel:
http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/beyondboundaries/beyondboundaries.html
I immediately thought of One Leg and Flash Hand. So I know our American friend with one leg already did it on the AT and Flash Hand did part last year and again this year. Bill Irwin also did it blind. Will we see a wheelchair bound person and a double amputee try it next on the AT?:-?
briarpatch
10-13-2005, 23:31
from the Clark Hammock Website: http://junglehammock.com/beyond.php
SGT Rock
10-14-2005, 09:02
I think a hammock is a great idea for that sort of hiking and camping. Since you never exactly know where your people are going to reach a point where they have had enough and can't keep going, a hammock provides a place that is dry and level wherever there are trees - and as I understand it Nicaragua has plenty
Will we see a wheelchair bound person and a double amputee try it next on the AT?:-?
Rock, thanks for sharing the link. I've got a couple of thoughts regarding this subject.
On one hand, I'm all for someone wanting to push the envelope, push themselves to see just how far they can go. It's an awesome experience, and you can't beat the self esteem/self confidence boost.
On the other hand, it's just a matter of time before some disabled rights activists decides to come in and start making insane demands that certain portions of the trail need to be made more accessible. And when that happens, I'll jump on the bandwagon opposing such demands.
For those of you who've hiked any significant portion of the A.T., you know how physically demanding some parts can be, just based on your personal experience. The amount of energy I had to expend to transverse those same portions would be equal to you hiking the same part, then turning around, and re-hiking the same part all over again. As a result, the mechanical componants of my prosthesis began to break down. I replaced my leg 4 times last year, and once this year, just to hike the A.T.
There were times when the friction between the prosthetic socket and my skin would cause large, painful blisters. During those times, I couldn't wear the leg. Rather than sit around and wait for the blisters to heal (losing valuable hiking days), I would attempt to hike using arm cutches. The result? Not only did I have severe stump blisters, but also had blisters on my palms the size of silver dollars. (Please, no palm blister jokes...)
When I started out, I wanted to hike the A.T. to 1) prove to myself that I was capable of doing something that seemed impossible, and 2) prove that I was just as capable as the next guy of hiking the same terrain.
I learned that, given enough time, I am capable of doing the impossible, but in reality, I am not as capable as the next guy. While the inward-emotional desires are the same, the physical capabilities aren't. There are limitations, and I recognize them. However, that doesn't prevent me from trying. Pass or fail, I'm grateful to have had the chance to try.
-Scott
On the other hand, it's just a matter of time before some disabled rights activists decides to come in and start making insane demands that certain portions of the trail need to be made more accessible. And when that happens, I'll jump on the bandwagon opposing such demands.
Scott, I think there are places along the trail where it is entirely possible to make access more readily available. Is that in the White Mountains or the Mahoosuc Range? Perhaps not, but providing access is a federal requirement, and there are places where it can and probably should be done. Dave Startzell, the Executive Director of ATC is very knowlegeable about the federal guidlines regarding accessability. The ATC takes these guidelines very seriously, and I have faith in their ability to manage the trail for all sorts of users.
Having taken 43 blind & visually impaired students out on the Cumberland Trail this past April, I can tell you first-hand that providing trail experiences for folks with disabilities can be a life altering experience, for both the hiker, and the volunteers who make such an experience possible.
Scott, I think there are places along the trail where it is entirely possible to make access more readily available. Is that in the White Mountains or the Mahoosuc Range? Perhaps not, but providing access is a federal requirement, and there are places where it can and probably should be done. Dave Startzell, the Executive Director of ATC is very knowlegeable about the federal guidlines regarding accessability. The ATC takes these guidelines very seriously, and I have faith in their ability to manage the trail for all sorts of users.
Having taken 43 blind & visually impaired students out on the Cumberland Trail this past April, I can tell you first-hand that providing trail experiences for folks with disabilities can be a life altering experience, for both the hiker, and the volunteers who make such an experience possible.
Jeff:
I can see where you're coming from, and to a degree, I am in agreement. If there are some areas that wouldn't be so harshly impacted by modifications, then I'm all for it. But to go in and make some drastic changes to the trail (overall), I feel this would detract from the overall experience for everyone. Why should the able-bodied hiker have to compromise his/her wilderness experience just so someone else who isn't as physically capable can enjoy the same thing? (I'm probably not wording this right, but hope that you see my viewpoint as well.)
Part of the A.T. experience is the challanges that it offers. It wouldn't be much of a challange to have a 2,178 mile long gravel path. No rocks, no roots, no PUDS? I can't imagine the A.T. being like that.
Cumberland Gap National Park over in Harrogate has some really nice accessible trails, as does Panther Creek State Park. When I don't feel up to the challange, I frequent these places.
I know the area you're talking about in New Hampshire/Maine, and those are some areas where the impact would be low. There are also some places along the southern portion of the trail that wouldn't suffer from the low impact.
The late Ed Hommer, double amputee, became the first to summit Mt.McKinley, and did so right alongside his able-bodied companions. When he was killed, Hommer was training for Everest, and was crushed to death by a falling boulder.
Erik Weihenmayer became the first blind person to summit Mt.Everest.
Bill Irwin became the first blind person to hike the A.T.
All did so without the request or demand for modification or accommodation.
Homer, Weinhenmayer, Irwin, myself, and countless others of disabled Americans recognize that we're entering territory that isn't necessarily compatible with our respective disabilities, yet we make the conscious decision to move forward, knowing and accepting the fact that there are barriers that must be crossed. We, ourselves, must cross these barriers, and not expect someone else to come along and move them for us.
-Scott
smokymtnsteve
10-14-2005, 18:02
Homer, Weinhenmayer, Irwin, myself, and countless others of disabled Americans recognize that we're entering territory that isn't necessarily compatible with our respective disabilities, yet we make the conscious decision to move forward, knowing and accepting the fact that there are barriers that must be crossed. We, ourselves, must cross these barriers, and not expect someone else to come along and move them for us.
-Scott
I am walking toward a city that isn't there,
on a path that doesn't exsist,
Until I take the next step.
May the peace of Mother Earth be with you, Scott.
as another person with a disability I totally agree with you.
Very well expressed, One Leg.