Post #1

 I'm working at Hoyt arboretum for my project, looking to help them with their mission of showing nature to a larger scale of diverse audiences. I am mainly working so far on an independent project, documenting and describing each of the 3 different ADA accessible trails at the arboretum. These trails/paths have been paved for some time, however not many handicapped people tend to visit Hoyt because of the difficult terrain to navigate. It is very helpful for the disabled community to have access to detailed descriptions and images of where they will be traveling, what they will be traveling on, and how steep the grade is. I have spent my time so far walking each of the loops thoroughly, taking pictures of each segment, and compiling all of this information into a google doc that my mentor Becky will edit before we publish to the website. 

Here are some segment pictures of the Overlook Trail:

I have found this project difficult because I did not know, neither my mentor for that matter, how one calculates the grade of a trail. I have been trying to research ways to do general grade, but with paths this short it really does not prove very useful. We've worked around this challenge by divying up the trail into different sections, as to more accurately be able to tell visitors how hard of a walk it will be for their specific situation. A major plus to this project is that I have gained a bit of insight (a lot more than I had before) about handicapped people, and especially people in wheelchairs getting into the outdoors. More specifically the great challenges that stand in the way for this community to recreate outside have become much more apparent to me during this time, and I have been able to take a way a sense of purpose in trying to work for more accessible outdoor recreation for all people. Whatever that may look like... down the road. 

I've worked for a while at Hoyt with the maintenance crew doing plant-and forest care related projects, which is how I got this project. Although, I've been trying to continue working some with the caretakers, it's been hard with only my left arm, so I'm so far sticking to mostly independent things, such as this project. I'd love to really make an impact on the amount of handicapped people who feel comfortable visiting the arboretum is one of my goals. Another would be working as a trail ambassador where I walk with maps and such all day and help people find their way along the path, or get help if they need etc.... Lastly, I'd love to learn more about horticulture and native pnw plants from Martin, the main horticulturalist at Hoyt. Since this is something I am very interested in studying in the future.