Newspaper column: ‘Access For All’ to the great outdoors

Capitol Reef National Park, in South Central Utah, preserves not only unspoiled nature but relics of those who settled the land. The authors find it a good destination for visitors with limited mobility. (Photo by Deborah Wall.)

Nevada and the Southwest are chock-full of gorgeous scenery from the heights of Wheeler Peak to the depths of Death Valley, but enjoying them often requires a bit of stamina.

Along comes a unique book for those who want to see these sights but have limited mobility — whether in a wheelchair, using a walker, having a service dog or simply not in the best of shape, as related in this week’s newspaper column, available online at The Ely Times and the Elko Daily Free Press. For these people, and frankly anyone interested in getting out and seeing our great land, experienced outdoor writers and photographers Deborah Wall and Dennis Boulton have penned “Access For All: Touring the Southwest With Limited Mobility.”

The numerous, lush photographs alone make the book a valuable addition to anyone’s library.

The writers traveled tens of thousands of miles to research and take photographs for the book, finding accessible trails, overlooks, campgrounds, parking, bathrooms and lodging accommodations for the dozens of beautiful natural sights in Nevada, Arizona, Utah and western California.

Previously there has been little information available about which outdoor destinations are equipped to accommodate people with limited mobility, even though more and more outdoor sights have redoubled efforts to provide access to areas formerly available only to the young and fit. Longer life expectancy and early retirements have given more of us time to travel, despite aching joints and shortened breath.

In addition, the book suggests several road trips in which the scenery is visible from the comfort of an air-conditioned car, such as Highway 50: Loneliest Road in America.

“U.S. 50 roughly parallels the trail used by the Pony Express, the short-lived mail delivery system which ran from 1860 to 1861 …” the book tells us.

“If you long to experience the ‘real Nevada’ of present-day Western films, this is a good place to do so. To do it properly, allow two or three days; don’t fight the 382 miles from Carson City to Baker (home of Great Basin National Park), but savor them.”

In addition to the sights to see and the wildlife to watch for, the book is rich with history and anecdotes that you can regale your friends and family with while on the outing.

“In the Moapa area (Jack) Longstreet killed a man named Dry. Dry had a bad reputation, so authorities accepted Longstreet’s claim of self-defense. But on the hilt of Longstreet’s revolver, Dry’s notch wasn’t the only one,” we are told. “Longstreet built at Ash Meadows in 1895. He cleverly set the back of his cabin into a natural spring mound, whose running water provided refrigeration for food storage.”

The book, published by New University Press, hit the bookstore shelves this week and is available on Amazon.com for $24.99.

Read the entire column at Ely or Elko.

New travel book about Southwest hits the bookstores

There is a book signing Sunday in Boulder City for a new book about outdoor sites in Nevada and the Southwest that are accessible for those with limited mobility. Though it is targeted for the needs of this specific demographic, the book was a wealth of information about where to go and what to see and what is the history of places for anyone interested in our regional scenery. And the photos are gorgeous.

Here is the press release in its entirety:

 

Authors present newest outdoor

book at historic Boulder Dam Hotel

            Outdoor authors Deborah Wall and Dennis Boulton have published a new book designed to help people with limited mobility enjoy the same sights that awed others with the natural beauty of the American Southwest. The new book will be unveiled, and available for purchase and signing by the authors, from 1 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. Sunday, June 22, at the Boulder Dam Hotel, 1305 Arizona St., Boulder City.

Deborah Wall

“Access For All: Touring The Southwest With Limited Mobility” is a guidebook to choice outdoor attractions, selected especially for their accessibility to those in wheelchairs, using walkers, or simply requiring relatively level and easy pathways to viewpoints. As in other books Wall has published, detailed directions are given to each site, but in this case the directions also deal with accessibility issues, such as the availability of accessible restrooms and campsites or, in buildings associated with the outdoor sites, elevators.

 The new book is published by New University Press, http://newuniversitypress.com/, a Las Vegas company specializing in non-fiction, and is available from Amazon.com. Complete with many excellent photos of the striking scenery recommended, it is priced at $24.95.

            Wall, a professional outdoor writer and photographer, is the author of a popular bi-weekly column on hiking in the View Neighborhood Newspapers distributed with the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and also carried in the Boulder City Review. She wrote two previous, well-received books on hiking, “Base Camp Las Vegas” and “Great Hikes: A Cerca Country Guide,” besides publishing numerous articles on hiking and touring in the Southwest. She was the most prolific contributor to the outdoor magazine “Cerca” and to its successor, the Cerca travel pages carried monthly in the Review-Journal.

Dennis Boulton

            Her co-author, Boulton, is a retired geologist and teacher. He has earned degrees from UNLV and UNR and has lived in Nevada since 1965. Like Wall, he is an expert hiker, and Boulton has been a guide for backpacking and whitewater adventures. The two jointly wrote columns on accessible recreation before deciding to compose a book on the subject.

            Little information was previously available about which outdoor destinations are well-equipped to accommodate those with limited mobility. Yet social and technological changes have made it increasingly likely those citizens will seek adventure outdoors.  Better roads and cars, and advances in wheelchairs, walkers, artificial limbs and braces, and other equipment, have made it possible for them to reach outdoor destinations formerly seen only by the rugged and young. Greater life expectancy and opportunities for earlier retirement have given many aging Americans the time to travel, despite the artificial hip or the pacemaker. Furthermore, the wounded but willing veterans of America’s wars in the Mideast seek, and deserve, the opportunity for outdoor adventures in a peaceful landscape.

Wall and Boulton are both experienced and poised public speakers who offer in-depth slide shows featuring the photographs from their travels. They speak on hiking and outdoor travel in Nevada, Arizona, California and Utah. To contact them about possible speaking engagements or booksigning appearances, e-mail them at deborabus@aol.com.

            The Boulder Dam Hotel is a historic structure dating from the 1930s, when it was the accommodation of choice for VIPs visiting the construction site that became the crowning achievement of the Depression-era public works project, and created the famous structure now called Hoover Dam. Restored, the hotel is accessible to those with limited mobility. Besides operating as a hotel, the building also contains a historical museum focusing on the building of the Hoover Dam.