Access to Adventure: Accessibility in National Parks

Summary

Podcast Summary: National Park After Dark

Episode 353: Access to Adventure: Accessibility in National Parks

Release Date: February 9, 2026
Hosts: Danielle & Cassie

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Overview

This episode explores how people with disabilities have confronted and overcome physical and societal barriers in America’s national parks. Through two inspiring stories and contextual discussion, Danielle and Cassie highlight what it means to access wild places when the odds — and infrastructure — are often stacked against you. The episode covers both past achievements in physical and policy accessibility, as well as current threats and ongoing efforts toward greater inclusion.

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Main Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Stage: Accessibility in National Parks

• Opening Reflection: Danielle opens by recalling President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s 1937 visit to Glacier National Park, noting that FDR used a wheelchair and often experienced parks from a car — a reality still mirrored by many Americans with disabilities today.
• Key Fact: 1 in 4 American adults has some form of disability (CDC data, 2024). Despite some progress, park accessibility remains limited, with many trails and facilities out of reach.
  • “For example, Glacier National Park… lists over 700 miles of hiking trails; only two of those miles are advertised as accessible, flat, and wide enough for an average wheelchair user to navigate.” (Danielle, 02:03–03:00)

2. Story 1: Climbing Guadalupe Peak in Wheelchairs (Texas, 1982)

The Expedition (10:38–34:30)

• The Team: ‘POINT’ (Paraplegics On Independent Nature Trips), a group of paraplegic outdoorsmen, decided to climb Guadalupe Peak (8,749 feet), the highest point in Texas, using specialized, non-motorized wheelchairs.
• Preparation & Obstacles:
  • Custom wheelchairs with special tires, but no electric assists.
  • Trail described as “steep, rocky, and narrow,” often requiring “scooting on foam pads” when wheelchairs couldn’t advance.
• Teamwork: The group worked together to navigate stairs, loose gravel, and dangerous cliffs—using rocks as wedges, fabric for traction, etc.
  • “You’d wedge fabric or rocks under the wheels to regain traction, just like you would use a floor mat if you got stuck in snow.” (Danielle, 17:00)

Memorable Moments

• Physical Toll: By day two, blisters, cramps, and infections had forced some to stop; three persisted to the top.
• Ranger Support: A young ranger, Jonathan Jarvis (later NPS Director), agreed to support them with water; his wife baked treats for the group.
• Summit: After five grueling days, three men made it to the top.
  • “I figure it took me five days to climb the tallest mountain in Texas, so the rest of my life I can do anything that I want.” — Don Rogers (33:20)
  • “If everybody would work together like this, the world would be a better place.” — Joe Moss (32:43)

Lasting Impact

• The climb brought national visibility, shifting perspectives within the NPS.
• Policy Change: Eight years later, Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities Act, requiring accessible facilities by default.
• Personal Impact:
  • David Kiley: Became a 13-time Paralympic medalist and Hall of Fame inductee.
  • Don Rogers: Became a recreation therapy professor and accessibility advocate.
  • Jonathan Jarvis: Cited the POINT climb as a linchpin moment for policy change.
• Quote: “They showed that it wasn't a disability, but a different ability.” (Danielle, 34:26)

3. Accessibility Progress (34:40–38:20)

• Early approaches focused on “access with assistance or by request,” placing the burden on the visitor, not the park.
• ADA (1990) shifted the onus, requiring real, built-in accommodations across public land spaces.
• Modern parks employ tools like trail assessment devices (hetaps), provide handcycles/all-terrain chairs, and post more granular trail data—but progress is slow and resources limited.

4. Story 2: Kayaking the Grand Canyon Blind (Colorado River, 2014)

Eric Weihenmayer’s Expedition (38:40–65:00)

• Eric Weihenmayer: The first person to summit Everest blind and later kayaked the entire Grand Canyon (~270 miles, 21 days, 80 rapids), guided only by voice.
  • “He climbed the highest points on all seven continents... and when he reached the summit of Everest... was the first person to ever do so completely blind.” (Danielle, 39:05)
• Lonnie Bedwell: Another accomplished blind kayaker and veteran, joined Eric for the journey.
• Training: Years of mastering whitewater techniques, especially the critical “kayak roll” needed to right oneself after capsizing.
• Guides: Each blind paddler relied on expert river guides (Harlan Taney, among them), communicating by helmet radio during dangerous rapids.

Lava Falls – The Climax (50:40–61:00)

• The Challenge: Lava Falls, the canyon's deadliest rapid, was approached with dread yet determination.
  • “Some mornings he would be so nervous about what was coming... he would be physically sick.” (Danielle, 47:30)
• First Attempt: Eric capsized and had to “swim” out, demoralized but undeterred.
  • “I didn’t successfully run lava. I swam lava. What’s the possibility of me trying it again?” — Eric (61:20)
• Second Attempt: Eric tried again and succeeded, demonstrating not just physical skill but remarkable perseverance and trust in his guide.
  • “With tears in his eyes, [Taney] said, ‘Thanks for letting us be here with you.’” (62:34)

Reflections & Impact

• Quote: “I’m probably not supposed to say this, but I honestly hate it when people tell me that anything is possible. Barriers...are real things with substance, and they actually hurt a lot.” — Eric (57:10)
• Eric and Lonnie both went on to inspire others: Lonnie has since guided blind veterans; Eric hosts the “No Barriers” podcast.
• Teamwork and trust were essential—miscommunication could be life or death.
  • “His communication skills have to be so good... when someone else couldn’t see what you were talking about.” (Cassie, 52:14)

5. Modern Barriers, Modern Threats (65:20–68:10)

• National Parks have lost 25% of their workforce. Proposed budgets threaten further cuts.
• In 2025, the DOJ withdrew multiple ADA guidance documents, potentially weakening protections for disabled visitors.
  • “Webpages featuring wholesome interviews with wheelchair using visitors now have alerts...that any guidance on inclusion should be considered rescinded.” (Danielle, 67:15)
• Despite these setbacks, the hosts emphasize that progress comes through persistent advocacy—“not handed over, but earned.”

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On human resilience:
  • “I love when doctors tell a person, you’ll never be able to do this. You can’t do this. And that person is like, ‘Watch me.’” — Cassie (04:11)
• On changing perspectives:
  • “If you want to go to the bathroom, ask for help. It’s like, just make it so I can get into the bathroom by myself. Like, what? What is wrong with you?” — Cassie (36:21)
• On diminishing accessibility:
  • “While the ADA law itself remains in effect... this action removed or rescinded various interpretations and technical assistance documents...” — Danielle (65:30)
• On real barriers:
  • “Barriers...are not imagined. They’re not perceived. They’re real. They’re real things with substance. And they actually hurt a lot.” — Eric (57:10)
• On why the stories matter:
  • “I could care less whether people climb mountains or kayak, but we’re hoping that people look within themselves and say, ‘What am I capable of doing?’” — Eric (67:55)

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Additional Recommendations & Resources (70:23–73:23)

• Documentaries:
  • ‘Assault on a Mountain’ (Guadalupe Peak climb) — YouTube (short, 1980s style)
  • ‘The Weight of Water’ (Eric’s Grand Canyon expedition)
  • ‘Wampler’s Ascent’ (first person with cerebral palsy to climb El Capitan) — YouTube
  • ‘Blink’ (family travels before children lose vision) — National Geographic
  • ‘The Long River Home’ (Lonnie Bedwell’s Grand Canyon journey)
• Books:
  • Touch the Top of the World (Eric Weihenmayer)
  • No Barriers: A Blind Man’s Journey to Kayak the Grand Canyon (Eric Weihenmayer)
• Podcast:
  • No Barriers – Hosted by Eric Weihenmayer

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Reflections & Takeaways

• Human Spirit & Advocacy: Both stories are extraordinary examples of “refusing a narrow worldview of what people with disabilities are capable of.”
• Teamwork & Trust: Success often hinges on mutual trust, communication, and support.
• Policy Matters: Behind individual achievements often comes broader advocacy and systemic change.
• Ongoing Challenge: Even as progress is made, accessibility is often the first to suffer from budget or policy cuts—keeping advocacy always necessary.
• Universal Message: Ultimately, these stories invite all listeners to reconsider their own perceived limits and the limits society places on others.

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Useful Timestamps

• 00:02–03:18 — Danielle: FDR’s legacy and intro to disability in parks
• 10:38–34:30 — Story 1: The GPT Peak climb (POINT expedition)
• 34:40–38:20 — Progress: Accessibility policy evolution
• 38:40–65:00 — Story 2: Blind kayakers on the Colorado
• 65:20–68:10 — Modern barriers and threats to progress
• 70:23–73:23 — Documentary/book/podcast recommendations and concluding thoughts

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Tone & Style

The hosts mix admiration, humor, and pointed advocacy—celebrating human grit while candidly condemning institutional failures. The episode is motivational yet grounded, eschewing both ableist “inspiration porn” and hopelessness, opting instead for nuanced hope and a call to action.

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Final Words

Cassie: “National parks are for everybody, and to make it less accessible ... is just not fair.” (69:55)
Danielle: “Nobody can tell you what you’re capable of in whatever aspect.” (74:05)

Listen, reflect, and remember: Everyone deserves access to adventure.

Transcript

[Danielle]

In September of 1937, as the larches turned golden, President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed the nation from the Two medicine chalet in Glacier national park, saying in part, today, for the first time in my life, I have seen Glacier Park. Perhaps I can best express to you my thrill and delight by saying that I wish every American, young and old, could have been with me today. The great mountains, the glaciers, the lakes, and the trees make me long to stay here for the rest of the summer. I hope that each and every one of you who can possibly find the means and opportunity will visit our national parks. In the nearly 90 years since that address, millions of Americans have taken Roosevelt's advice, finding landscapes that capture the imagination and test physical fitness. National parks have become synonymous with outdoor adventure sports. Climbing, rafting, backpacking, miles from cell service or even trails. These activities offer a chance for a challenge, a way to connect with nature, and an escape from busy everyday life. During his presidency, FDR visited a lot of parks. There are pictures of him watching Old Faithful in Yellowstone, touring Yosemite Valley, and arriving to formally dedicate Shenandoah. In the pictures of these visits, you see a man who found meaning in our parks and who believed they are worth protecting. You might also notice that in all of those photos, he's riding in a car. After contracting polio at age 39, FDR lost the use of his legs as an adult. He used mobility aids to navigate the world. Wheelchairs, leg braces, custom ramps to enter and exit his vehicle, and horseback riding. He remains one of the most prominent figures in world history with a disability. But he is far from alone. According to CDAC data published in 2024, one in every four American adults has some form of disability. Physical conditions that make it difficult to walk or climb stairs, vision loss, hearing loss, or cognitive disabilities. People for whom daily life can feel like a challenge to overcome. People whose experience in national parks, like Roosevelts are often limited to what you can see from a road. For example, Glacier national park is celebrated as a hiker's paradise and lists over 700 miles of hiking trails on their just two of those miles are advertised as accessible, flat and wide enough for an average wheelchair user to navigate. To some extent, this is unavoidable. No one wants to pave trails up every mountainside or crisscross the wilderness with boardwalks. And progress has been made slowly but surely in lowering the barriers to access in our parks. But some people refuse to wait for progress and refuse to accept a narrow worldview of what people with disabilities are capable of. Faced With a life changing diagnosis, they set out to do the impossible. Welcome to National Park After Dark.

[Cassie]

Hello, everybody. I'm Cassie.

[Danielle]

And I'm Danielle.

[Cassie]

And I'm really excited for this episode. This has been one that people have been requesting for a long time, but is also one that I have been looking forward to for a really long time.

[Danielle]

Yeah, it's a completely new world. I'm so excited to talk to you about some. Okay, so I'm getting ahead of myself. There are two stories that we're going to cover in today's episode. Instead of like one big long in depth story, we're going to cover to touch on two stories that happen in different parks at different times. But I also have some recommendations at the end for even more stories to just like really immerse yourself in and get curious about. Because this is an episode I think that you're gonna particularly like because it's just like so harps on the human spirit and how incredible people can be and that's your whole thing.

[Cassie]

I love human resilience and I also love one of and probably from personal experience, but I love when doctors tell a person, you'll never be able to do this. You can't do this. And that person is like, watch me.

[Danielle]

Oh yeah, hold my ear.

[Cassie]

That's like, that's one of my favorite things. So I'm excited to hear the story.

[Danielle]

Okay, well, before we get into it, I have to tell you this. I didn't tell you beforehand. Usually we go over like, oh, do we have anything to touch on before we get into the episode? And I didn't tell you this because it's so funny. I have two updates.

[Cassie]

Okay.

[Danielle]

For us, the first is the OG Foaming pants woman came forward. Did she? Yes, yes.

[Cassie]

She's revealed herself.

[Danielle]

And this is what she. And this is what she said. Hi, girls. Listening to the five year recap and I am so excited to hear your shout out to my trail tale story. WTF Pants. So I guess that was the original. Yeah. Okay. Hearing my story again was so fun. Hearing you two talk about your love for the story has me absolutely soaring and healing from the embarrassment as well. Feel free to reach out at any time. I actually just moved to the Boone area pretty close to the scene of the crime. Not sure how to prove it was me other than to say that you shared the photos I gave you on your Instagram and you can cross check those with my own. And she tagged her Instagram for us. I'm pretty sure the same photo is there too. Y' all are truly the absolute best. And your pod has been such a light in my life that continues to get better with each year. Keep it up.

[Cassie]

Ah, our icon. It's good to hear from you.

[Danielle]

And then the other update, which I forget when we made fun of this. It was relatively recently. I just forget which episode it was in. But when we were giving people crap about misidentifying wildlife, particularly mountain lions, and I called out somebody in Manchester who posted a picture of like a bobcat that was clearly a bobcat.

[Cassie]

Did they come forward?

[Danielle]

They sure did. Stop. That's so funny. Okay, this is it. It says, hey, NPAD team, I just listened to your Yellowstone. Oh, the Yellowstone episode. I don't know which one that was. Oh, was it your survival? Your most recent survival?

[Cassie]

Yeah, I think so.

[Danielle]

One that we were. Yeah, it must mean it. Okay, I just listened to your episode episode and had to laugh because in all caps, I'm the bobcat guy from Manchester, N.H. aka I reported a bobcat thinking it was a mountain lion. I'd love to tell you the whole story. I actually wrote an entire stand up so skit about it and the backlash from wildlife enthusiasts that came after it. If you want me to email it to you, please let me know. I definitely learned my lesson. Anyway, keep up the good work. Yellowstone is incredible. Just went there for the first time this past June. Take care, Keith Big Cat Rano. Isn't that so funny? What a small world.

[Cassie]

What a small world.

[Danielle]

And he's a good sport about it. Clearly. He wrote a hole Stand up. People are built different. They know how to take a ribbing.

[Cassie]

And sometimes you just have to laugh at yourself.

[Danielle]

Truly. Yeah. So thank you, Keith Big Cat. I love Big Cat Keith. And yeah, so I guess there might be a follow up of that because I emailed him back. I'm like, please send us the stand up. We'd love to see it. Okay, so those are just some two quick little updates in our world, but let's get on to the episode. So like I mentioned, these are going to be two shorter stories. They are both remarkable and quite different and set in two different national parks. And they're all about people with disabilities reaching for history within those parks. And the first is going to center around a group of paraplegic hikers who set out to climb Guadalupe Peak, which is the tallest mountain in all of Texas. And they did so in wheelchairs. And then the second is about kayakers who attempted to paddle 227 miles through the GR canyon. Of course, we've covered the Grand Canyon and the Colorado river, running through it a number of times. And so from all of that, we kind of know how trust and difficult those conditions can be. And they did so completely blind. So very cool. Let's get started and we'll go to Texas first because we haven't been to this park yet.

[Cassie]

Amazing.

[Danielle]

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[Cassie]

Gotcha.

[Danielle]

Yeah. In it, you see the men huddled together for a Photo op just after dawn, right before they set off to begin the trail. Pretty unforgivingly. The steepest parts of this trail happen pretty much right off the bat. A mile and a half climb up loose rocks and stone steps with no shade to protect you from the punishing desert Texas sun.

[Cassie]

Can I ask? Yeah, just really quick. And this is in the 80s, so I'm assuming not now. I see a lot where there are the electric wheelchairs that have the crazy off roading wheels and you can go over stuff. Are they climbing this with their arm strength and.

[Danielle]

Yes.

[Cassie]

And doing this all. Okay.

[Danielle]

There is no like E bike sort of assistance, you know, with now there's like electrical powered, different types of technology and things like that for not only recreational bikes and things like that, but for wheelchairs and stuff. No, this is all hand arm powered.

[Cassie]

Gotcha. Wow.

[Danielle]

Incredible. It's incredible. Yeah. And of course, kind of as an ode to our one star review episode we did a couple months ago, there are some reviewers online that leave reviews about this trail and some of the comments include it's dusty, stupidly long for just 3,000ft in elevation gain and it has a lot of erosion. So people are like not very happy about this trail.

[Cassie]

Not great trail conditions.

[Danielle]

The Pointe crew tackled all of those things with the help of specially designed wheelchairs. While they didn't quite have the wide tires of modern day fat bikes, kind of like you were alluding to a little bit, their chairs were designed with wider front wheels, main tires that balance grip with puncture resistance, and special compartments under the seat for storing their gear. So while they weren't powered in any sort of way, which I think is what you were asking.

[Cassie]

Yeah, I was asking if it was. But they were fitted to go over better terrain.

[Danielle]

Yes.

[Cassie]

Just like the skinny wheels that you see.

[Danielle]

But like it's kind of like a. It's hard to explain without seeing it visually, but it was kind of an in between of the standard wheelchair, like hospital wheelchair that you're probably imagining and like a fully decked out fat tire bike wheel. Like it's kind of in the middle. Okay. Do you know what I mean?

[Cassie]

It makes sense to have way better tires because you're not going to make it very far over really rough terrain. Terrain with tires that can't.

[Danielle]

Yeah, they. Exactly, yeah. So they, they prepped for it. They didn't just say like, oh, we're going straight up there. They clearly prepared.

[Cassie]

Yeah. My biggest question was if they were powering this with their own arms, which they are. Which is right yeah, incredible. So, like, picturing a bunch of Popeyes going up, like, just absolutely ripped.

[Danielle]

So, like I said, they were prepared for this track, and they actually prepared for it to at least a few days. You know, this is something that they knew was going to take them quite a bit of time. So they carried rain gear, camp stoves, sleeping bags, and everything else you would need to go backpacking. Some of them tied excess gear to their chairs over their shins. David Kiley was part of this expedition, and he helped design their chairs. In the first footage shown of the team on the trail, you see him carefully descending a steep section, leaning back in his chair as if he was holding a wheelie on a bike. The large tires helped to grip the loose gravel and roll over big rocks, all while balancing him upright until he hit a snag and tumbled forward to the ground. When Kylie was in high school, he sustained a spinal cord injury. On a winter trip, he went inner tubing and slammed into a tree, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down. Afterwards, he found a community in wheelchair basketball leagues, and in time, he moved his chair around like an extension of his own body. You can see that skull clearly in the footage from the climb. His tumble from the chair was remarkably controlled, and once on the ground, he expertly swung the chair around his head and lowered it down through the rocky section. That tripped him up, scooting along on the ground on his butt before hopping back onto the seat. This strategy of getting as far as you could in your chair before making a controlled exit was critical, as some sections of the trail were impossible to navigate on wheels, and they carried foam pads to sit and scoot for this exact reason. But more often than not, the men stayed in their chairs, developing solutions to their common obstacles. Stairs that were built into the trail to help hikers and fight erosion were a constant hurdle that they overcame with teamwork, pushing each other over and around the steps or whatever else got in their way. When their tires were unable to grip the loose gravel, they'd wedge fabric or large rocks under the wheels to regain traction, just like you would use a floor mat or something underneath your tire if it got stuck in snow. And while a tired hiker could simply stop and catch their breath, the point crew weren't so lucky. One slip of the hand or lapse in judgment and their wheelchairs could carry them over a cliff. Well placed rocks frequently acted as a sort of emergency break to keep their chairs in place, letting them take much needed breaks. During steep sections, they made steady progress, but the climb was grueling Kylie later said of it, it was the most difficult mobility I've ever faced, just in terms of physical exertion. It's in a world of its own. Before the climb even started, one of their members had to bow out due to a kidney infection. And by the end of day one, Shorty Powers threw towel as well. Muscle spasms that started in his fingers had spread to his chest during the climb, and he felt it best to not continue forward. After a full day on the trail, the men made it 1.75 miles and made camp. There is only one designated campground about halfway up the mountain, but they got special permission to stay right alongside the trail. Of course, they were in talks with Jarvis and all that to make this happen, and they just, like, had to pull right over and be like, that was exhausting. And the cramps, your hands must feel. Yeah, just going, like gripping something for so long, you know. And the other thing I wanted to talk, why I wanted to do this episode now is because, as of, you know, I would say a week ago or so, now that we're recording this, Alex Honnell just, you know, scaled the building in Taipei, which was incredible and amazing to watch. And it was like, he is stressed me so much.

[Cassie]

Meanwhile, he didn't have a care in the world. And I'm sweating. My whole body thinks I'm the one climbing and he's just vibing, listening to his music.

[Danielle]

I kept, like, looking away. I had it on and I watched the whole thing, but I did look down and. Or put it on mute every once in a while because first of all, the commentators were pissing me off. And I know it's their job to, like, reiterate things and talk to the audience as if they don't know what free soloing is or who Alex Honnold is. But it was kind of. It felt like mansplaying. It's like, do you know what he's already accomplished? Like, this is incredible. But this is.

[Cassie]

It was just a little much. Whenever you wanted to hear what Alex was saying while he was climbing, because he would speak occasionally, the commentators were speaking over him and you couldn't hear anything. Yeah, and those were the moments. Everything else I was fine with, but those moments where Alex was speaking and they were speaking over him, I'm like, no, stop.

[Danielle]

Stop talking.

[Cassie]

I want to hear what he's saying. What is he. What is he thinking up there right now? And so that was my. My gripe with that.

[Danielle]

Yeah, I forget what I was saying about that. If we just. Oh, yeah. The reason I wanted to do this episode in the wake of, you know, a big moment like that is because we see these incredible feats of athleticism and you know, he's a superhuman. Those pull ups he was doing. Yeah.

[Cassie]

When he's like, yeah, after 300 reps my arms get a little tired. I was like, but it's not even a 300 pull ups.

[Danielle]

He's just holding on like gripping the sides of the squat rack or climb rack or whatever. Yeah. So anyway, I think that's where my.

[Cassie]

I got like, I could do like one of those maybe. And he's like, after 300, my, my arms get a little tired.

[Danielle]

I would put my life on. I can't even do one hold it the way that he was holding those. You're not grabbing and holding on and pulling yourself up like that.

[Cassie]

You're literally just gripping, pulling it like this way.

[Danielle]

Yeah. There's no way. I would bet every penny I have that I could not do one of those. But anyways, I was the reason that like my brain connected those things. That image of him gripping those poles while thinking of this story. And I just think that we give a lot of flowers to people like Alex Honnold who deserve them. But it's kind of like all our focus is on people like that when there are so many stories of people with disabilities who overcome amazing things just like that all of the time and just don't get as much attention. And I think that's why I was like really wanting to do this episode around kind of a flurry of activity around Alex Honnold because people, it's in their minds, you know, of like that is incredible to watch. Yeah. You know, 2026 is the year of me gaining my muscle back. Yes, back. I once had a lot of it, believe it or not. And you know what that means. I need protein and I need good sources of it. 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But just know it was so good I'll be switching it up to the sockeye salmon here soon. And here's a big gold star moment for me. As a Certified B Corp, ButcherBox is committed to doing things right from how the animals are raised to how their team supports workers and reduces environmental impact. As an exclusive offer, new listeners can get their choice between organic ground beef, chicken breast or ground turkey in every box for a year plus $20 off when you go to butcherbox.com npad that's right, your choice of organic ground beef, chicken breast or ground turkey in every box for an entire year plus 20 off of your first box and free shipping always. That's ButcherBox.com NPAD and don't forget to use our link so they know we sent you anyways. Okay, back to the story. So they're in their camp on the side of the trail and they conk out for the night. They're obviously extremely tired. Their arms are probably like noodles. They have blistered hands. But they were in really high spirits. I mean, they had accomplished a lot. 1.7 miles in that terrain and wheelchairs and scooting along on their butts in that Texas sun. That's something to celebrate. So they climbed into their sleeping bags, took a hard earned rest before the beginning of day two. In 1920, British mountaineer George Mallory was asked why he wanted to climb Mount Everest. And his answer was pretty simple. Because it's there. So why was it that the POINT crew wanted to climb Guadalupe Peak? It all started with Shorney Powers. He had a lifelong love of nature, was incredibly outgoing, and built a large network of friends through wheelchair basketball leagues. He started POINT to empower people with disabilities through outdoor experiences. And as POINT gained momentum, the group became part of a growing disability rights movement through backpacking and whitewater rafting, activities typically seen as too hard, too impractical, or too dangerous for disabled people. POINT challenged stereotypes about disability. One of the climbers in the group heading to Guadalupe Peak was Don Rogers. Rogers was paralyzed at the age of 21 in a motorcycle accident, an event that would change his world forever, suddenly relying on a wheelchair to get around. His plans to go to dental school were blown up, and he feared the isolation and stigma that wheelchair users often experience. Worst of all, his doctors told him he might not have long to live. But he soon met Shorty Powers and a whole community of wheelchair users. He found new direction in life and a new perspective on his own disability. When asked about their Guadalupe climb, Rogers said, we wanted to be able to demonstrate what was possible, not just talk about it. We wanted to get out and show people. And that's exactly what they did. Even as Shorty Powers returned to the parking lot on the start of day two, the climb was getting national media attention. Scenes from the expedition appeared on the nightly news across the country. And one of the climbers girlfriends said her phone was ringing off the hook from people wanting quotes and wanting information and just any sort of in to what was going on with the group. But all of the publicity they got was happening off of the mountain, largely unknown to the hikers, who still had a long way to go. Day one had some of the steepest sections of the whole trail. But even though day two wasn't as steep, the difficulty never let up. The team started out wearing matching blue and white long sleeve shirts with the pointe logo. But under the relentless summer sun, they ditched their long sleeves or shirts entirely to stay cool. Joe Moss, who lost his lower legs in Vietnam, wore a camo bucket hat. He used a headband over a bandana for sun protection. While Bobby Lees wore a Yankees baseball cap and a T shirt that said make your move. But anyone who's gone backpacking knows that with each day, even as you eat through a lot of your food supply, your gear can start to feel heavier and heavier.

[Cassie]

Well, as you get tired and more and more tired, that weight can just feel more, even if it's getting less. I like to drink all my. I like when I'm like, well, my pack will get lighter as I drink more water. But then as you get more tired, it's harder to carry less.

[Danielle]

Yeah, your fatigue sets in and it's just, yeah, more difficult. Their custom wheelchairs were much lighter than standard wheelchairs at the time, but they still weighed several times more than a backpack. Carrying the same amount of equipment to get up a 10 degree incline each turn of the wheel required all of their arm strength and their entire core. A grueling and relentless task that took a clear physical toll. Throughout the day, Bobby Lee suffered from pain in his side, like a serious type of cramp. And while he gritted through that side pain, it was blisters that would spell the end of his run. The hand rims on their custom chairs, the parts of the wheel that of course you grab to push yourself forward, had Been lined with BMX grips, sweat resistant and easier to hold. But after clenching those rims for over three miles, by the end of day two, Lee's blisters made each turn of the wheels unbearable. So the team agreed to camp a little earlier than planned, spending one more night with Bobby before he went down the next day. The two men who had already bailed from the climb offered encouragement over a radio, cheering the three men who remained. Joe Moss, David Kiley and Don Rogers. In two days, they had covered two thirds of the mileage to the top. But their final bush held some of the trickiest terrain yet. Trail so narrow and rocky and for such great distances that they had to scoot along the ground and tow their chairs behind them with ropes. At one point, Rogers held the rope in his teeth to use both of his hands. Just absolutely muscling it up.

[Cassie]

It's like we're doing this and I'm gonna. I'm gonna finagle away to make it happen, whatever that looks like.

[Danielle]

Yeah. And as they were going up higher and higher, the room for error got smaller. At one point, they reached a narrow section cut into a chalky white cliff. To their left, a rock wall, and to their right, a drop off so sharp that it could make your stomach drop just watching it at home. Speaking from personal experience, I don't do well with heights. Any slip up and you're in a complete free fall. They pass through this section close together, one after the other, as if to provide a backboard if the man in front of slipped backwards. The hike had always been hard, but as they went on, it started to feel really dangerous. On day four, the weather began to turn on them. A serious thunderstorm rolled in, sending chills down the men's spines. They sought shelter under a rocky overhang and made camp far from their wheelchairs to get away from the metal frames in case of a lightning strike. But their determination never wavered. Kylie said, I've never been that close to the power of thunder echoing through those peaks. You know how small you were and how powerful Mother Nature was. But I was beyond the point of no return. You couldn't have dragged me off that mountain without getting to the top. All the while, the only support they had been getting was from that ranger, John Jarvis, bringing them water. Although Jarvis's wife, Paula, also smuggled them some baked goods and on one occasion, a six pack, which they said were the best beers they ever had in their lives. As day five appeared, the sky cleared and the three men had their goal in sight. Faced with some of the steepest terrain yet, they used every trick they had developed to reach the finish line. And after a few demoralizing false summits, they finally made it 8,749ft into the very top of Texas. In the documentary, you see the three men proudly embracing for a photo, congratulating each other with the phrase Power Pellegic. Before Rogers popped a bottle of champagne down at the trailhead, Shorty Powers and Bobby Lees celebrated with them over the radio. And. And the cameraman asked the men how they felt after this monumental accomplishment. Joe Ma said he couldn't explain the feeling. He said, it's been 13 years since I've worked with a team like this. If everybody would work together like this, the world would be a better place. He wished that everyone could do what they did. And Don Rogers said, hey, man, I figure it took me five days to climb the tallest mountain in Texas, so the rest of my life I can do anything that I want. Worried about the safety of a possible descent down the mountain, because of course they were super nervous towards the end. There was even just getting up it. The Park Service actually called in a helicopter for a ride for them to get down the mountain and obviously down safely. Yeah, National Guard helicopters landed right on the summit so the men could celebrate what they'd achieved without dreading the trip back down. And that's where the documentary Assault on a Mountain ends, celebrating the remarkable achievement of three determined adventurers as they soared into the sunset. But this five day climb, a journey that has never been replicated, by the way, left a long legacy. Climber David Kiley went on to become a decorated athlete. After 13 Paralympic medals, he was inducted into the Olympic and Paralympic hall of fame in 2022. Don Rogers pursued a career in recreational therapy and as a celebrated professor at Indiana State University, advocated for universal design and outdoor recreation. And in 2009, the Ranger who helped them on their journey, John Jarvis, became director of the National Park Service. And this is just the ripple effects that happen in life are crazy. So while the climbers were struggling up the mountain, Jarvis remembered one of the men who stayed behind led him through the park campground in his wheelchair, demonstrating right to him exactly how much harder it is for a wheelchair user to navigate these overlooked places. And unlike Guadalupe Peak, these campgrounds and public facilities are in the park services control to design. Jarvis would later say, I think this is one of those linchpin events that changed a lot of perspectives. They were there to prove something. They showed that it wasn't a disability. But a different ability. Eight years after the climb, Congress passed the Americans with Disabilities act, establishing new accessibility requirements for public facilities, including those in national parks. And during his eight year tenure as National Park Service director, Jarvis worked to ensure the agency met both the letter and intent of the law. While this was not their achievement alone, the point crew helped make that possible. David Kiley said it best with that climb, they etched their wheel prints into history. So because of that interaction that Jarvis had with members of the point team that day or those that stretch of days, he really saw firsthand from a friend, like, hey, take a look around at what you typically see in a campground or just getting around a park. Now watch through my eyes and my ability and what can we do to make this better?

[Cassie]

Just gave him a totally different perspective of something that he maybe even never even considered before.

[Danielle]

Absolutely. And kind of as like, that's kind of where we're going to leave the Guadalupe story. And before we transition into our next story in the Grand Canyon, just as like a little bit of an intermission between the two, I just want to briefly touch on how the National Park Service progressed on accessibility over the years. The agency's early years are summed up pretty well in an early 1970s handbook titled National Park Guide for the Handicapped. And it was the first of its kind. The booklet offers brief descriptions of hundreds of different park sites throughout the National Park System and provides information on accommodations for mobility, access, and notable obstacles that somebody with a disability might face in these different types of public facilities. And as you're reading it, if you feel compelled to read this 1971 handbook, you might find one phrase that's repeated over and over again, and that is access with assistance or by request, meaning that you could get into a building if you asked a staff person for a ramp. You could get over a curb to the bathroom if someone physically lifted you up. Accessibility was an afterthought that put the burden on visitors with disabilities. And this was the experience John Jarvis witnessed while exploring the Guadalupe Mountains campground with his friend, who happened to be a wheelchair user. So at first, in the 70s, the Park Service clearly acknowledged people with disabilities as visitors, but they're like, yeah, it's accessible. You just need help. You just need somebody else to.

[Cassie]

It wasn't a priority. It sounds like for them, it was like, yeah, we can assist you. If you need it, just ask us for help, but we're not going to accommodate you or make any changes to make this easier for you. It was like, it almost feels like they felt like There weren't enough people to make any real changes. They're like, yeah, just call us if you need something. But that's so I think it's kind of belittling to an entire population of people where it's like, if you want to go to the bathroom, ask for help. It's like, just let, just make it so I can get into the bathroom by myself. Like, what?

[Danielle]

Right.

[Cassie]

What is wrong with you?

[Danielle]

Yeah. So clearly there's a lot of room for improvement at that point in time. But this guidebook was a nice first step. I mean, you have to start somewhere. And in time, of course, more steps forward progressed since the passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Parks are required to incorporate accessibility by default rather than by request, making physical spaces friendlier to everyone, including digital spaces for the vision and hearing impaired. Parks require captions and image descriptions for any pictures shared online and audio descriptions of any video that they share. And in some places, park sites have started interpreting the history of disability in America at places like the home of Franklin D. Roosevelt, which is a national historic site in New York. As for trails, lots of parks have trails designated for mobility. Shorter, often paved or boardwalk hikes. But all trails and national parks are open to adventure seekers like the Guadalupe Peak climbers. Rules against things like bikes do not apply to people with disabilities. If you depend on one to get around. Wheelchairs are allowed wherever people are in national parks. That said, adaptive athletes have grown to favor a different type of tool, hand cycles, instead of a two wheeled chair. Hand cycles are kind of like three wheeled recumbent bikes that let you pedal with your hands. And I've seen people use them quite often in Colorado especially.

[Cassie]

Yeah, I see people on the road with them a lot.

[Danielle]

Yep, and we'll touch a bit more about what the future of accessibility and parks might look like towards the end. But for now, let's get to the Grand Canyon and our next story. Cassie and I recently hosted the BAM Film Festival and we had to be on baby, meaning focused and present. And one of the best ways to be both of those things is by staying hydrated. And people that attended our wilderness first aid course will know this. But everyone else listening, especially you hikers, should know how to recognize the seven signs of mild dehydration. They include fatigue, brain fog, nausea, headaches, irritability, yellow urine, and feeling thirsty. I know I start feeling dehydrated when I start getting a dull headache. So that's my sign to reach for. Liquid IVs, sugar free hydration multiplier, Liquid IV is the only sugar free hydration product on the market clinically demonstrated to hydrate faster than water alone. Just one stick and 16 ounces of water hydrates better than water alone. Powered by Live Hydra Science, an optimized ratio of electrolytes, essential vitamins and clinically tested nutrients that turn ordinary water into extraordinary hydration. They have tons of flavors to choose from, but if you want my favorite, it's probably a tie between the White Peach or the Raspberry lemonade. My hiking pack and my carry on for the airport are never complete without a few sticks of Liquid iv. And now come to think about it, I even have a bunch in my center console of my car. I just know that after drinking one I feel recharged and it keeps me on my game when I feel like I'm running in overtime. Show up start to finish with hydration from Liquid IV Hydration Multiplier Sugar Free Tear Pour live More go to Liquid I.com and get 20% off your first order with code NPAD at checkout. That's 20% off your first order with Code [e-mail]. This story begins on the Colorado river in 2014 as a group of whitewater kayakers prepared to raft the mighty Colorado river through the Grand Canyon. One of the kayakers is named Eric Weinmayer. Eric is an absolute legend and incredibly gifted athlete. His list of accomplishments is so insane, but just to give you like a just smidge of a taste here, over the course of 13 years, he climbed the highest points on all seven continents Denali, Kilimanjaro, and Mount Everest. And when he reached the summit of Everest in 2001, he was the first person to ever do so completely blind. When Eric was just four years old, he was diagnosed with a rare disease called retinoschesis, and over the next 10 years, he slowly lost what remained of his sight. The week before his freshman year in high school, the last remnants of his vision faded away. Completely blind, he said. It felt like a prison. And shortly before that, his mother passed away. While he had support from friends and family. Years later, Eric's dad described his fear that those experiences would break his son, that he'd be swallowed by despair, fear or self pity. But they never did. Sure, he could never catch a baseball, but he could wrestle. And after wrestling, he joined a group that took blind children out to try adventure sports. Many people who are blind navigate the world with the assistance of poles and guide dogs, using those tools to traverse city streets and grocery stores. By his late 20s, Eric did all of that, and he'd also learned mountaineering, learned to cross crevasses on tiny ladders and scale the steep snow and ice to the top of Mount Everest. The achievement made worldwide news, and he later published a book about it called Touch the Top of the World. But on the way down, one of his friends and fellow climbers pulled him aside to celebrate and to make a request. He said, hey, Eric, do me a favor. Don't let this mountain be the greatest thing that you ever do. I love that.

[Cassie]

Like, this is not your peak. You have so much more to do.

[Danielle]

Quite bold to say to someone, by the way, just stay on progress. But I, I understand the sentiment. And Eric took it to heart. Among other activities, he found whitewater rafting. He trained for six years to learn how to maneuver a whitewater kayak with the help of a guide, a second kayaker who would follow right behind him and would shout different instructions, whether go left or right, slow down, speed up, kind of signal any sort of obstacles that were upcoming. Just kind of like an audio guide of what was happening in the river. River guide Harlan Taney first met Eric on a trip he was on with blind youth, and the two quickly became friends. Eric describes Taney as sort of like a river Yoda. And the two came up with a plan. With Tania support, Eric would paddle a one man kayak the entire length of the Grand Canyon. A 21 day, 270 mile journey through over 80 big water rapids. The rapids on this river are so forceful and deafeningly loud that the most skilled paddlers can easily get turned around or flipped upside down. Flipping underwater in white water is a common but deadly and disorienting hazard. But it's safer to stay inside your boat than to be out of it. So for that reason, Eric trained tirelessly to perfect rolling a kayak when underwater. The I wouldn't know from personal experience. I've never done this, but they say when underwater, you lean forward, steady the kayak with your knees, and in one swift motion, you sweep your paddle away from the boat, pivoting and pushing your boat until you find yourself upright again and just like swoosh yourself right back up. And from what I understand, of course, from no personal experience and solely watching YouTube videos, it looks really fucking hard.

[Cassie]

When I worked in outdoor education, I worked with a lot of whitewater kayakers and we had a huge outdoor swimming pool. And some of the newer people who were learning to whitewater kayak would go in with their kayaks and they Would practice.

[Danielle]

Have you done it before? No.

[Cassie]

I'm not a water person.

[Danielle]

I know, but you surprised me a lot of times with, like, little antidotes of things you've done. And I know you don't do it now, but I just didn't know.

[Cassie]

I watched happily from the sidelines.

[Danielle]

Okay, okay. Well, Eric mastered this, and it got to the point that he could kind of just easily right himself if he found himself in those situations. But between each rapid, there were long stretches of calm. And to navigate the river, Eric and Taney both wore helmets for safety, but they each had built in headsets and speakers to communicate with one another. Using the microphone, Taney guided Eric through the river, coached him through rapids, and helped him stay oriented. It's remarkable to watch. The level of teamwork and trust that the two share is really cool to witness. And again, if you want a little movie night wreck, here it is. There's a documentary, it's longer than the one about the point team, and it's called the Weight of Water. And it's all about this expedition that's about to unfold. Very cool. Eric went into this journey with a degree of pride, a feeling of quiet satisfaction that no other blind person had ever attempted. What he was about to do, of course, rafting the Grand Canyon. But then he met Lonnie. Lonnie Bedwell, a military veteran and power plant employee, lost his eyesight in a hunting accident at the age of 31. Like Eric, he stumbled on the sport of whitewater kayaking on his road to grappling. With the loss of his sight, he joined a disabled veteran sports clinic and tried out a kayak in the pool and came up with a pipe dream of rafting a Grand Canyon. So now Eric discovers he's not alone in this pursuit of wanting to, you know, do this huge accomplishment. And Lonnie was told that he couldn't raft the Colorado until he rolled his kayak at least a thousand times. So he went home that day, took his kayak out into the pond that he had behind his house, and just started rolling. He's just flipping and rolling. He's like, all right, I'm going to master this and let's do it. I'm going to get to a thousand and, you know, jokingly said, as long as I can roll up as many times as I roll down, I'm golden.

[Cassie]

Sure, I'm dizzy just thinking about it.

[Danielle]

But you go, Lonnie. The two men originally decided to attempt to paddle the river completely independent of one another. Just kind of like, let's, we have the same goal, but like, let's just do it on our own with our own teams and, you know, good luck.

[Cassie]

Like rooting each other on. Just don't want to do it at the same time with each other.

[Danielle]

Yeah, but they change, they changed their mind and ultimately they decided to do it together in hopes that their adventure would serve as kind of like an inspiration point to others to transcend barriers and team up and join forces and do something amazing together. And so two blind men set out on the same journey that summer. Both Eric and Lonnie had practiced tirelessly and built trusted relationships with their river guides. And as they made progress down the river, one hazard loomed large in their minds, and that was Lava Falls. Easily the hardest rapids of the entire journey. It drops 37ft in just 100 yards. And to put that into perspective a little bit, the river normally drops 8ft per mile through the canyon. The currents here reach speeds of 20 miles an hour. Chaotic waves threaten to turn you over, and a hole at the top of the rapids can suck you down and hold you underwater until you drown. And people have died here and lost their lives in the rapids and of course, others throughout the entire canyon. But this one in particular was very daunting. And here are Eric and Lonnie doing all of this blind. And while they each had access to extraordinary reserves of both training and bravery, the trip scared them. Even as the days passed on their journey, as they conquered one rapid after another, Eric in particular really was dreading Lava Falls, a big milestone 180 miles down the river. Some mornings he would actually be so nervous about what was coming at Lava Falls that he would be physically sick and like dry heave. And just the anxiety and nervousness about this was really getting to him and starting to impact the other days preceding the event. But they kept making progress all the same. During the long periods of calm water, Eric could hear the canyon all around him. He could hear the water echoing off sheer cliffs and feel the sun on his face when it rose high in the sky. And could feel the cold air when the canyon obscured the sun. He could feel the canyon all around him, even if he couldn't see it. And with each rapid, Taney guided Eric through each obstacle. Guided only by his voice, Eric paddled confidently into boiling torrents. In the documentary, this usually goes pretty well, pretty smoothly. But on one rapid, Eric plunges into a wave before coming to a complete stop, hung up on something as Tani zips by on the current. Then Eric and his Boat disappear completely underwater before reappearing upside down. 10 yards downriver, rushing water, brown with silt, slams into him hard as he fights to roll. Before, in slow motion, he finally resurfaces. Undaunted, he paddles on to the next through the headset in their helmets, cutting through the roar of rushing water. Eric and Tani tackled one rapid after another. Lonnie, for his part, had two guides, one that led in front, calling out his name like a game of Marco Polo, and another behind him. The men developed an extraordinary amount of trust in one another. Dany had a mantra for Eric. Be clear, calm and precise in your action, and be at peace in where you are in the moment. An approach and a system that worked pretty well, but it wasn't perfect. Nine days before Lava falls Approaching yet another rapid, Taney shouted a command to Eric. Hard left. But Eric couldn't hear him. The microphone, for whatever reason, had cut out. Taney spoke again and again, repeatedly issuing instructions that Eric just could not hear. Eric could only hear the rush of the river and paddled forward. Most rapids only last around 30 seconds to one minute. And even when you can see what's ahead of you, the rolling torrents can flip you into underwater rocks, slam you into cliff walls on the bank, or into one another. Collisions that can easily leave you unconscious. Eric had several accidents before joking after he dented his helmet that it's almost better to not know that it's coming, which is a perspective. The way that you get hurt worse is when you tense up for an impact compared to relaxing.

[Cassie]

So I've heard that in car accidents too.

[Danielle]

Yeah, same.

[Cassie]

So it's like if you truly don't know, you're not going to be stressed about it beforehand or.

[Danielle]

God, I don't know. Yeah, because he is stressed, you know, for sure.

[Cassie]

I mean, this is no easy. I would feel this way even with eyesight and to not see what's coming. I mean, I, I agree with him, though. It's almost better just not to know. It's like, I'm out here regardless. I've been training for this. Like, let's go.

[Danielle]

Yeah. And it just makes me nerv. Nervous just like telling it. Luckily, in this case, Taney was able to paddle close and shout over the water. And that night, they were able to repair the broken headset. But even with a functional headset, Taney described the level of stress he was under as a guide. Because Eric's safety, you know, he felt was completely up to him.

[Cassie]

He's putting his entire trust in him. And his safety. Like, he. He does have a lot of pressure on him to guide him correctly to use. And I'm thinking, I was thinking about this earlier. When you're telling this story that you have to be such a good communicator to, it is really difficult to instruct someone with what you are envisioning and seeing and having the words you use make sense for that for someone else. Like I just picture in gym class. I remember in gym class we used to pair up in teams and you would have someone, they would put a bandana over your eyes and they would tell you instructions on where to do certain obstacles. And it was supposed to be like a team building activity, but it was so hard to say what you meant when someone else couldn't see what you were talking about. So I was just thinking, I was kind of reminiscing on that experience in elementary school. And then his communication skills have to be so good for him to really be saying and explaining correctly where it can't be misconstrued for something else.

[Danielle]

Yeah. And not only that. So not only do you have to be impeccable in your communication skills, he too was running these dangerous rapids, he also was navigating treacherous conditions. And of course, he has plenty of experience. He's a guide that knows what he's doing. On this particular trip, he really needed to do his best to not roll over, even for a short time, because he needed to be Eric's eyes, not only for his own safety, but for Eric's as well.

[Cassie]

Because to be in constant communication.

[Danielle]

Right.

[Cassie]

I'm also envisioning while this is all happening though. I know there's a lot of seriousness of instruction and stuff.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

But I'm also envisioning every time they make it through a rapid, they're both like yelling in each other's ears. Every time they go down like a small waterfall or whatever it is, down a big rapid. I'm just picturing like the hooting and hollering of like, fuck yeah, we did it.

[Danielle]

And yeah, there's a lot of celebration, of course, alongside some of these more anxious moments. But yeah, like, he was just really worried about getting swept down river or moving past Eric in any way or getting like hung up on something because then he was, you know, both Eric and him were out of contact with another, with one another, and it could have been really bad. I like to think that I am a pretty open book with you guys. But off air, I value my privacy. Meaning no one is peeping into these windows because I Have three Day Blinds. As someone who has really leaned more into home design in recent years, window curtains and blinds and shades actually make a huge difference in your home. And three Day Blinds are the leading manufacturer of high quality custom window treatments in the US and right now, if you use our URL three day blinds.com NPAD they are running a buy one, get one 50% off deal. I like to think that I have a good eye for design, but I, I'm not an expert. And that's why I love that. Three Day Blinds has local, professionally trained design consultants who have an average of over 10 years of experience. They provide expert guidance on the right blinds for your house. In the comfort of your own home, it's super easy to set up an appointment. You'll get a free no obligation quote the very same day. And as an independent woman, I do a lot by myself, but I can admit I'm not very handy. So I will happily defer to the expert team at three Days Blinds because they handle all of the heavy lifting, the design, the measuring, the installation, so I can just kick back, relax, and leave it to the pros. I also really enjoy the variety of the products they have because they have everything under the sun. They've got curtains, roller shades, shutters, motorized shades, and even the ones you can operate with Alexa. It's kind of like smart house, you know, that old Disney movie, but only in real life right now. Get quality window treatments that fit your budget with 3 day blind blinds. Head to 3dayblinds.com npad for their buy one get one 50% off deal on custom blinds, shades, shutters and drapery for a free, no charge, no obligation consultation. Just head to threedayblinds.com NPAD one last time. That's buy one get one 50% off when you head to the number 3D a Y blinds.com NPAD. On the shoreline each night, the rafters took part in familiar river rituals. Jumping off waterfalls and bathing in creeks, drinking PBR and whiskey out of boots on their wetsuits. Eric got around using a trekking pole like a walking stick. Yeah, I know.

[Cassie]

Ill people PBR out of their boots.

[Danielle]

Yeah, river people.

[Cassie]

Is that a thing?

[Danielle]

Is that a thing?

[Cassie]

Does it add to the flower flavor? That's disgusting.

[Danielle]

I mean, that's what they say is the thing to do on the river.

[Cassie]

I mean, if that was, if everyone else was doing it and it was like what you're supposed to do, I, I would try it, but ew.

[Danielle]

Yeah, it's already kind of gross. Out of a can and just add.

[Cassie]

Some stinky feet flavor in there, and it's good to go eat.

[Danielle]

Yeah, well. Eric got around using the trekking pole like a walking stick as people played music, sang songs, and celebrated the beauty of their adventure. And around the campfire, he had time to reflect about where he was and what he was doing. Why was he floating the river? The point crew wanted to show the world what disabled people were capable of. Eric had already done that. He was the first man to climb Everest blind, An achievement that earned him acclaim and praise worldwide. I mean, he wrote a whole book about it. Like, this was no small, private feat. This was something that was celebrated around the world. But as Eric got married, started a family, and a career as a public speaker, the scale of his accomplishment led many to write off the barriers he faced each day as a blind man, offering him a stream of kind yet empty feeling. Words of encouragement. In the documentary, he says, I'm probably not supposed to say this, but I honestly hate it when people tell me that anything is possible. Barriers, they are not imagined. They're not perceived. They're real. They're real things with substance, and they actually hurt a lot.

[Cassie]

It's kind of minimizing your experience. Like, you can do it. Anything's possible. It's like, yes. But also, can we recognize that things are a lot more difficult for me to have anything be possible?

[Danielle]

Yes, absolutely. And that was kind of his whole thing. He's like, yeah, I appreciate the encouragement.

[Cassie]

And it's like, I'm glad you believe that, but also, please, that I am living a different life.

[Danielle]

Exactly. Exactly. And on this river trip, Eric felt a weight of his reputation. He would lie awake, his stomach tied up in knots, and worried about lava falls. And he would ask himself, I climbed Mount Everest, so why am I so fucking scared? Sometimes I don't know why I stick with this. Partly it's because of my friends. They're not seeing this little blind guy squirming in the corner. They're seeing something else, and I want to be that thing they see. But despite his fears, he never quit. Point climbed Guadalupe Peak to show the world what they were capable of. And Eric was in the Grand Canyon to remind himself. Finally, Eric, Tani, and Lonnie all arrived at the place in the river that they had been waiting for. Lava falls. Out of their kayaks, the men hiked along the shore to stand above the falls, Eric listening to the roiling water as Tani talked strategy, hugging the eddy line, pointing right downstream to boils that shouldn't tip you over, but could point you one way or another as you went through. It takes two minutes to make it all the way through Lava Falls. And after strategizing, they set out. As the river got louder around them, here are the instructions that Eric heard through his headset. Getting close to that slick we heard about, still in green water, approaching the spoil. Calm strokes. Fight the spin. Hard right, hard right. Left turn. You're good. Then suddenly, Eric's boat got caught by a wave and flipped upside down. But he quickly rolled back over. Hearing tinny over the raging water. You're good. Hard right. But Eric flipped again, fighting the waves to roll for what felt like forever. He eventually had to give up. He bailed from his boat, pulled his spray skirt from the cockpit, and swam towards Taney's voice. Grabbing onto his paddle, he was pulled ashore. He had nearly made it all the way and fell out. Right before the end, Eric was demoralized. He had spent the whole trip worried about Lava Falls, only to fall out. Despite Taney's kind words, Eric felt like a drowned rat. As if to brush it off, Eric joked with the cameraman, because, of course, remember, there's a documentary being filmed. Throughout this entire thing, he joked, you wanted to see me swim, didn't ya? But like each time before, Eric refused to give up. After a short while, he returned to his guide side, saying, I didn't successfully run lava. I swam lava. What's the possibility of me trying it again? So they hiked back up to try again, carrying their kayaks upriver along the shore, Eric described that he didn't need to succeed. He just needed to know that he gave it his all. And this was giving it his all.

[Cassie]

It's like, I have to try again.

[Danielle]

Yep. With his guide right behind him in the weight of one failure and 180 miles of worry on his shoulders, Eric plunged in a second time, studying himself through one wave after another. Eric was pushed from all sides. Left, right, then up in the air and suddenly upside down yet again. But he quickly righted himself, Water swirling around him, he paddled again and again until the river flipped him another time before quickly rolling back upright. And then suddenly, he was through. Taney paddled up beside him, wrapping him in a huge hug. With tears in his eyes, he said, thanks for letting us be here with you. Lonnie, who also made it through, circled up with Eric, and they clapped their paddles together like a high five. They had done it. The rest of the river was easy by comparison. Their training and the incredible Trust that they found with their guides had paid off. For Lonnie, it was a life changing experience in the years since he rafted the Grand Canyon a second time, guiding a trip with four other blind veterans. Just last year in 2025, he finished climbing the highest summits on all seven continents, all while seeking to inspire others like him and confront how little society can come to expect from a blind person. As for Eric, the trip was another accolade in his legacy as an athlete and a powerful reminder of what he valued in life. He said that being blind can make him feel distant from the events of his own life, even rafting. He wanted to experience the river the way Taney could, but it felt like he was just going through the motions, like looking through a window at somebody else's life rather than his own. But the trust he developed with his friend, the skills he'd harnessed, and the never quit attitude that helped him get through Lava Falls helped him experience life in vivid detail. And as he paddled ashore, his wife and kids were there to surprise him. That year, the two were nominated as National Geographic Adventurers of the Year and remain friends to this day. And as with most episodes, my retelling is a very brief look at two remarkable athletes with a lifetime worth of stories. So, like I said, there's a book. There's always a book. Of course, the documentary I mentioned before, the Weight of Water. But you can also read Eric's second book, no A Blind Man's Journey to Kayak the Grand Canyon. And I actually was going through my camera roll because one of my goals for this year is to clean up my camera roll. Cause I have like 7,8000 pictures on it. I started the screenshots because I feel like that's the easiest thing to clear out. And for whatever reason, I had taken a screenshot of a photo I had taken at the library from two and a half years ago of this book.

[Cassie]

Oh, no way.

[Danielle]

I'm like, oh, this would be a good episode, I think. And I just took the picture and here we are. Yeah, as soon as I saw the COVID of that, the title didn't really spur the memory, but the. The COVID I was like, oh my God, I saw this years ago and it's coming full circle. As for Lonnie, he has his own website, lonniebedwell.com and he made a documentary about one of his later Grand Canyon expeditions called the Long River Home. And so we have a couple documentaries here, a couple book recommendations, and now there's a podcast recommendation because Eric has a podcast called no Barriers where he talks with other people who have overcome the odds of life, including many stories of resilience in the face of disability. He has over 200 episodes stretching back to October of 2018. So he's been in the game for a really long time and I really recommend listening to this show, the show, the podcast, if you ever want to feel good about humans again. Because the amount of episodes that he has about all sorts of just massively inspiring stories of all kinds of, that kind of just run the gamut of every sort of like I overcame this, this hard thing in life. It's just so incredible. And he does a really good job with the show. So podcast rec.

[Cassie]

What's it called again?

[Danielle]

No Barriers.

[Cassie]

No Barriers. I love that. That's really cool and I love shows like that too.

[Danielle]

As these stories have hopefully illustrated, disability is not a black and white category. As John Jarvis put it, it's just a different ability. Adaptive athletes are adopting better tools like hand cycles and taking advantage of lightweight electric motor assistance. State parks across the country have started offering all terrain wheelchairs, motorized chairs with tank like treads that help users conquer landscapes that slow down most wheelchairs, like sandy beaches or trails covered in rocks and tree roots. And national parks have largely steered towards a new approach to accessibility and trails. The more information, the better. Saying a trail is easy or hard can be helpful, but easy and hard mean different things to different people, and they're unhelpfully vague for most wheelchair users. New tools have been tried across different parks to measure not just the total length of the trail, but detailed foot by foot measurements of its route and its dimensions, what the trail surface is made of, where the steepest sections are and how wide or narrow the trail is, and any obstacles that you might find along the way. A substantial redesign of a park's trail system is a cost beyond the scope of current park budgets. This extra info is relatively inexpensive to collect through these machines that are called hetaps. They kind of look like strollers and are used to collect precise data on trail conditions like grade, cross slope width and surface type, and can help adaptive athletes safely assess what trails are within their abilities. But progress like collecting this type of data has slowed down. As we have discussed in previous episodes, and as many people are aware of, national parks have lost about 25% of their permanent workforce and proposed budgets from the current administration threatened to cut agency funding by at least a third. Webpages featuring wholesome interviews with wheelchair using visitors now have alert at the top warning readers that any guidance on inclusion should be considered rescinded. In March of 2025, the U.S. department of justice withdrew 11 guidance documents related to the Americans with Disability act, creating concerns among advocates that accessibility protections are being weakened. While the ADA law itself remains in effect. This action removed or rescinded various interpretations and technical assistance documents that previously helped businesses and public entities understand their compliance obligations. All of this to say these stories of accessibility in parks shows that progress is not handed over, it is earned. One through persistence, grit, and faith in the future, a belief that no matter the obstacles ahead of you, you can make a difference. As Eric said, I could care less whether people climb mountains or kayak, but we're hoping that people look within themselves and say, what am I capable of doing?

[Cassie]

Wow, what a really cool episode to do. And I honestly didn't know any of that last part about how, how signs and inclusivity around people living with disabilities is being taken from national parks.

[Danielle]

Yeah, it's a sketchy time. I didn't.

[Cassie]

I don't understand why that would even be a thing. Obviously there's a lot of questions around that, but I didn't realize that. And that's. That's awful because it feels like throughout the episode I was just like, yeah, we're making strides forward. We're adding all these things, and then why would we make things less accessible to people? I just don't understand that.

[Danielle]

Yeah, it's kind of like at this time, we're seeing the erasure and removal of a lot of information in parks kind of across the board ever. And it feels like it's touching everything that's important, from the history of slavery to, you know, ADA accessible documents to, you know, it's just like, it's kind of like, what is it not touching at this point? So I just, I didn't want to harp on it because I wanted this to be an overall positive episode. But it's really important to recognize that, yes, we've made strides. Yes, people are going against the odds and just proving what people with disabilities are capable of. And that's all amazing, but they're. Like Eric said, there are barriers that we still have to overcome, and there are still things that we need to deal with. And like, this is one of those things that is just another.

[Cassie]

And just to make life more difficult. Just, I. I just don't get it. And I do think it's important because it's something that we can all push for and we can all make our voices known for on things like that. And we can pay attention to. To this. But yeah, that's super disappointing because, I mean, we say it a lot on the podcast, but national parks are for everybody, and to make it less accessible to some people than others is just not fair.

[Danielle]

Yeah, well, I wanted to end with. Like I said, there are a couple other stories I wanted to touch briefly on, other than the two I just highlighted kind of in depth. And these are just quick recs. I definitely recommend looking into them further if you'd like. But one of them is about a man named Stephen Wampler. And you may have seen if your algorithm is anything like mine, which I have a feeling it is not. But recently in my algorithm, I've been getting clips of this documentary that have kind of been making the rounds. So. Steven is a documentary producer in Mountaineer who was born with cerebral palsy that affects the entire left side of his body. He was the first person with cerebral palsy to climb El Cap. And the documentary follows his ascent, and it's so fucking cool. He produced the documentary in 2020, I believe, and it's called Wampler's Ascent, and It's free on YouTube. Please go watch it. It is so great. His wife and his family is there, like, cheering him on. It's a whole big event. And it's just incredible to watch him again, like, just kind of in juxtaposition of Alex Honnold. Like, we've all watched Alex do this and now to watch. I mean, not throwing shade on anybody, but like, it's just like Alex has use of everything in his body, you know, and somebody like Steven did it in such a different way, and it was so emotional and amazing. I loved it so much. And he's done a lot of other amazing things. He created a foundation to help disabled children, and he's just done a lot of incredible things. So if you want to look into his story, I highly recommend that. And then another one I actually recommended in a new one of our newsletters a couple months ago. I forget which one it was, but it's for a National Geographic documentary called Blink. And it was released in 2024, and it follows a Canadian family on an epic worldwide adventure after three of their young children are diagnosed with an incurable eye condition, which is called retinous pigmentosa. It's rare, incurable, and it's genetic. And the disease causes progressive vision loss, leading to night blindness, tunnel vision, and eventual complete blindness. So they basically have their kids create bucket lists of things they want to see and experience around the world. Before they go blind. And the whole documentary is about just their epic adventures. Checking.

[Cassie]

I've seen the trailer for this one. I. I've never watched it. I'm not sure why. I feel like I don't have the streaming platform, but I have seen it and that's really, really cool.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

To do.

[Danielle]

So those are my two wrecks for more documentaries to watch. I'm on a documentary kick, but yeah. So that is the episode. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I know it's a little different from what we usually do is like, regarding format and stuff for the stories, but.

[Cassie]

Yeah, I think it was really cool. I'm glad that you touched on it because we actually get this topic as a recommendation quite a bit. And I think it's a really good way to highlight, like you mentioned at the beginning, the resilience of people. But I also think that there's this stigma against any person living with a disability that society almost caps their potential of what they can and cannot do. And I just think that it's a reminder that nobody can tell you what you're capable of in whatever aspect. I mean, if you're not this crazy athlete, but finding something that you want to do and not listening to society being like, sorry, that's outside your ability.

[Danielle]

Yeah.

[Cassie]

And it's like, yes, maybe, but maybe not. Maybe this is something I can do and I just have to figure out a different way to do it.

[Danielle]

Absolutely. Well, thank you everyone, so much for listening. We will see you next week. In the meantime, enjoy the view.

[Cassie]

Go watch your back.

[Danielle]

Bye, guys. Bye. Thank you for joining us again this week. If you love National Park After Dark and want to hear exclusive bonus stories, join us on Patreon or Apple subscriptions. Patreon subscribers have access to our National Park After Dark book club, live streams, Discord and much more. If you prefer to watch our episodes video episodes are now available on YouTube. If you're enjoying the show, please take a moment to rate, review, view and subscribe on your favorite listening platform. And to follow along with all our adventures, you can find us on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and X National Park After Dark. La importantcia del trabajo y que el noventa nueve porciento de las Personas de mas de cinquenta Ya tienen el vios que causa la culebrilla. Con ampoyas duros emanas haciendo quinclus mas simple La cule Habla Oikon to Dr.

[Cassie]

Y empinado.

[Danielle Roubaix]

Toyota Trucks Hi, this is Danielle Roubaix, the host of Bookmarked by Reese's Book Club, a podcast by hello Sunshine and I Heart Podcasts. I'm partnering with Simple Mills and I've just found my new go to reading snack, Simple Mills Almond Flour Crackers. Think of this as a quick book style review because these crackers deserve it. The premise A snack that feels light, not heavy. Made with almond flour, sunflower seeds and flaxseeds Nutrient dense ingredients your body can use, not empty carbs and the taste Crunchy, classic flavors that leave you feeling energized. For a good plot twist, try Popums Cheesy, airy, Poppable Crackers packed with veggies. Final Verdict these are a shelf staple. Find simple meals at your grocery store.