Laurie Pope, co-chair of the Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes accessibility committee, said that the organization is in the process of acquiring a wheelchair bike that will park users will be able to reserve online, like their track chairs. She said they hope to make this service available to the national lakeshore’s visitors in the coming months.
“We’ll be running the program on the Heritage Trail,” Pope explained. “We hope to get it going late summer, and it (the wheelchair bike) will be stored near the Dune climb.”
The vehicle is a Van Raam OPair wheelchair bike – a bicycle with a wheelchair attached to the front. Pope said that when a person with reduced mobility wants to ride the Sleeping Bear Heritage Trail, they’ll be able to make an appointment on the Friends of Sleeping Bear Dunes website, friendsofsleepingbear. org.
At their reserved time, the wheelchair user will meet with two volunteers who will accompany them on their ride. One volunteer will steer and pedal the bicycle while the park user sits in front, and the other volunteer will ride ahead of the wheelchair bike to ensure safety.
The Cyclery bike shop and rental service in Glen Arbor entered a dealership agreement with Van Raam, the Netherlands-based manufacturer of the OPair wheelchair bike, to help the Friends start providing this service.
This will be the latest effort by the Friends to make more accessible to people with limited mobility or other impairments. Pope said their most well-known accessibility service are their three track chairs. Track chairs are offroad, electric powered chairs that allow people with disabilities to traverse all terrains and enjoy locations like the National Lakeshore.
Two of these track chairs is available for use on the Bay View Trail at Kelderhouse Farm, and a third, which was purchased with funds provided by an anonymous donor in 2021, can be used on the Platte Trail. They can be reserved for Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and Mondays.
Pope said that their track chairs haven proven to be quite popular, so the Friends partnered with the Disability Network Northern Michigan for help managing the track chair rentals. Disability Network’s recreation coordinator, Chris Timm, helps manage the rental program on behalf of the Friends. Pope says he will also coordinate rentals of the wheelchair bike when it arrives.
The purchase of the wheelchair bike and track chairs were made possible by private donations, fundraisers, and grants from organizations like the National Environment Education Foundation and Hagerty Insurance.
Although the track chairs have been the most visible symbol of the Friends’ commitment to make as much of the National Lakeshore accessible to everyone as possible, Pope added that they have been increasing accessibility in other areas, including sand wheelchairs at the Maritime Museum and Cannery, an Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant floating dock system and kayak launch, and accessible parking and restrooms.
“We couldn’t do it without the park service,” Pope added. “They have been supportive of these initiatives, and the TART trail helped raise the money for the heritage trail’s paved bike path. The Friends are managing the program, but we couldn’t do it without the park.”
