Celebrating Outdoors for Everyone and International Adaptive Activity Day
Floating face down in waist-deep water off the coast of Nassau on a summer day in 2015, I studied the contours of the sandy ocean bottom. The sun cast shadows in some places while making others painfully bright, and before I saw the nearly invisible body of a fish swimming beneath me I noticed its shadow moving along in the sand. I was weightless and free, drifting along at the speed and in the direction the current pushed me, mesmerized by the sights below yet fully aware that my mom teaching me to swim when I was young provided the foundation for my current bliss. To this day I recall the peace and tranquility I felt in that moment.
During 26 years of life with a spinal cord injury, I’ve discovered different ways to spend time in the water. Help is always required, and fortunately, there are organizations and individuals committed to seeing that people with mobility impairments can access nature. One of my first post-SCI adventures was whitewater rafting on the Upper Colorado River during a visit to the National Sports Center for the Disabled in Winter Park, Colorado. With Wilderness Inquiry, a group devoted to connecting people of all abilities and backgrounds through shared outdoor experiences, I kayaked the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and spent several days sailing from Santa Barbara to the Channel Islands, one of America’s least visited national parks.
My preference for diving and snorkeling in warm, clear water means the Caribbean is home to some of my fondest memories: snorkeling with whale sharks off the coast of Isla Contoy in the northern Yucatan, feeding stingrays 15 feet below the surface in Grand Cayman, exploring sunken ships while scuba diving in the Bahamas, and kayaking in the nighttime through a bioluminescent bay in Puerto Rico.
Join Our Movement
What started as an idea has become a national movement. With your support, we can influence policy and inspire lasting change.
Become an Advocate
Traveling to any destination requires detailed planning, and even then there is no guarantee that the accessible hotel room you reserved will really be accessible. Airports, airplanes, rental cars, and transfer companies present additional challenges and hassles for the traveler with a disability. But in the water, the complexities of life on land are lost. The fish don’t care if I walk or push a wheelchair, and the lack of ADA-compliant ramps or curb cuts is irrelevant. Being in the water provides a rare opportunity for someone with paralysis to experience real freedom, and since water covers about 71% of the earth’s surface, that gives us an enormous playground to explore and enjoy.
Whether you prefer fishing or waterskiing, surfing or kayaking, snorkeling or sailing, scuba diving or sitting on the shore watching the waves, access to water and water-based activities is beneficial for everyone. It is also the latest addition to the Reeve Foundation’s Outdoors for Everyone initiative, a campaign that seeks to make it easier for those of us living with paralysis, our families, and our caregivers to access the great outdoors. What began in September 2023 with a focus on improving access to trails and parks now includes a similar emphasis on making it easier for our community to hit the lakes, pools, rivers, and beaches.
Christopher Reeve said, “Either you decide to stay in the shallow end of the pool or you go out in the ocean.” Why not recognize International Adaptive Activity Day, celebrated August 1st each year, by deciding to go out in the ocean?
About the Author – Kris Gulden has supported Reeve Foundation initiatives for more than 20 years. A former police officer, high school teacher, and recreational triathlete, Kris was paralyzed in a car vs. bicycle collision on May 26, 1998. Her favorite hobbies are exploring open spaces and photographing nature. She currently serves as the Accessibility Advisor to the Friends of Mason Neck State Park and never passes up the chance to advocate for improved access.