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2016/02/21

Log 2016022101

This is about what I call "handihikers."  I've never known of any.  These are physically disabled people who might hike certain portions of the Buckeye Trail and perhaps ultimately earn a Circuit Hike Patch.  And the ones that I'd really like to write about are those that are physically disabled, particularly below the waist.  Their wheels are their legs.

The Buckeye Trail Association (BTA) can be lenient about deviations from the route.  And a lot of the off-road is specifically for "non-motorized" use and that's often governed by the park, forest or natural area that the off-road trail is in.  Even with a push wheel chair, they would encounter some obstetrical.   But if the BTA is amenable to it, the handihiker could by-pass those areas on road at their discretion.  And several portions of the BT's off-road occur on improved surfaces, such as bicycle right-of-ways.

If a handicap person with a power chair wanted to do this, the first thing they should do is field test their chair with somebody they trust standing by to pick them up when it runs out of battery power.  They should test is from full to depleted on a variety of terrain types.  They might want to know how the chair will handle going up hill on loose gravel?  As a physically well abled hiker, I trust my equipment and know exactly what it will do.  They should probably consider packing a spare battery and know how to install it under trail like circumstances based on their own abilities and adaptations.

Hauling gear with an electric chair... With a little sewing, they might be able attach some bicycle side panners to some cotton fabric.  This way they can sit on the cotton and have the panners on the side.  A tent and some other gear could possibly pack under the legs near the edge of the seat with a bungee cord.  The biggest question is could the electric chair be modified to carry a lightly loaded bicycle trailer?

These are just a few ideas that I have.  With being the webmaster for the Ohio Transit Hiker's Resource, my maps admit for me that handihiking on the Buckeye Trail might be feasible as if it's an inevitable conclusion to come to.  The disabled have a few more options available with that than most people.

I'd advise that they only handihike between May 1st and November 1st.  The reason is that some of the backcountry gravel roads get torn up by 4WD vehicles.  They can be difficult for on a car.  And it's possible that it might take until about May 1st every year for the township maintenance crews to grate the those roads again.

I'm not physically handicapped, so I lack the experience necessary to be more thorough.  For right now, all of this is just a theory.

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