June is Get Outdoors Month, and we want everyone to get outside and take advantage of all that nature has to offer! We believe the outdoors should be for everyone! Below, you will find resources for accessible outdoor opportunities like physical activities, adapted sports, parks and more. You can also find out how to be an advocate for better accessibility for everyone and contact our team for any further assistance locating resources. Get outside and get active for your health!
To visit these resources, click the linked bullet points below the organization’s name!
Accessible Trails, National Parks and Neighborhood Parks
National Park Service
- Accessibility
- Learn more about access passes, service animals in national parks and more.
- Discover accessible parks and accommodations
- Find accessible features in national parks and accommodations depending on specific disability needs.
American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
- Explore Accessible Parks in the National Park System
- Find out more about five national parks that are increasing their accessibility for visitors and the features in the parks.
Trail Link
- Wheelchair Accessible Trails
- A comprehensive list of trails with photos and reviews to help you prepare for your next trail visit!
National Park Foundation
- Accessibility for All Americans Program
- Ensuring everyone can access and experience national parks. Securing funds today can guarantee that Americans with disabilities fully engage in the life and ecosystem of our national parks.
All Trails
- Find Your Outside
- Helps people explore the outdoors with curated trail maps that include photos, reviews and user recordings crowdsourced from our community of millions of registered hikers, mountain bikers and trail runners in 150 countries. You can search by wheelchair activities.
Trailforks
- Trailforks Trail Database
- A database, map and management system for users, builders and associations. A platform for trail associations to keep track of trail conditions, builders to log work users to discover, plan and share their activities. You can search by adapted biking.
Disabled Hikers
- Home Page
- A cross-disability-led nonprofit building disability community and justice in the outdoors.
Outdoor Recreation and Physical Activity
Cerebral Palsy Research Network
- Cerebral Palsy Recreational Activities
- A great list of adaptive activities, camps and programs for individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) and other disabilities.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Increasing Physical Activity Among Adults with Disabilities
- Check out the latest physical activity guidelines for Americans and receive the latest recommendations for being active from the CDC and their partners.
Driving to Independence
- Barrier-Free Adventures: Outdoor Activities for People with Disabilities
- Explore a variety of outdoor activities crafted to break down barriers and welcome everyone to experience the joy of outdoor adventure.
NorthShore
- 10 Fun Summer Outdoor Activities for Adults with Disabilities: Embrace the Season with Joy and Adventure!
- Ten outdoor activities specifically for adults with disabilities that cover everything from art to physical activity!
Muscular Dystrophy Association
- Get Outside: Tips for Accessible Outdoor Activities
- Tips for fun activities to try outside and helpful reminders for preparing for your next trip outdoors!
Easterseals
- Camp and Recreation Directory
- Camping and recreation programs in the United States that serve children, adults and families of all abilities.
Adapted Sports and Fitness
Spaulding Adaptive Sports Centers (SASC)
- Spaulding Adaptive Sports Centers Activities
- Spaulding offers year-round programs including in-person sports/recreation option and virtual fitness classes. In-person programs are primarily located in the Massachusetts area (three main regions including Boston metro region, Cape Cod and the North Shore) but all are welcome to attend after creating a profile on their website. Other in-person programs are offered in out of state skiing/snowboarding programs in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine and Vermont! Virtual programs are available to anyone!
Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program (BORP)
- Home
- Find youth and adult sports programs, fitness, outings and more for individuals in the northern California area on the BORP website!
- Virtual Fitness Programs
- BORP offers several virtual fitness classes that include activities like strength and cardio training, tai chi and yoga!
Move United
- Home
- Move United works with organizations in the United States to provide opportunities for individuals with disabilities to play sports.
- Sports
- Get information about adaptive sports programs, equipment and more through Move United’s sports page!
Adapted Skiing
- Home
- Find the right equipment for adaptive snow skiing, clubs and accessible resorts and watch informational videos on their website!
Challenged Athletes Foundation
- Adapted Sports Organizations
- A comprehensive list of national adapted sports organizations covering a variety of sports and organized by state.
Special Olympics
- North American Region Resources
- Provides year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports for children and adults with intellectual disabilities, giving them continuing opportunities to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy and participate in a sharing of gifts, skills and friendship with their families, other Special Olympics athletes and the community.
Outdoors for All Foundation
- Resources
- Resources related to recreation, disabilities, organizations, other websites with relevant information and more.
Inclusion Matters
- Where We Play
- An inclusive playground directory with locations around the world.
Additional Outdoor Resources
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
- Parks, Recreation and Green Spaces
- Be an advocate for better community inclusion and discover what other cities and states are doing to improve outdoor physical activity for all.
Land Trust Alliance
- Open to All
- Assists people with disabilities and provides practical ideas for incorporating inclusion into your land trust’s programming and organizational culture.
Wheelmap
- Find Wheelchair Accessible Places
- This map works similarly to Wikipedia: Anyone can contribute and mark public places worldwide according to their wheelchair accessibility. The criteria for marking places is based on a simple traffic light system (Green = Fully wheelchair accessible).
Wheelchair Traveling
- Find Accessible Places Around the World
- Works to empower people with limited mobility, their friends and loved ones to access and experience the world of accessible leisure and adventure travel.
Google Maps
- Wheelchair Accessible Places on Google Maps
- Allows people to turn on an “Accessible Places” feature to have wheelchair accessibility information displayed more prominently in Google Maps.
NCHPAD Outdoor Videos
- Outdoor Inclusive Yoga: A Practice for Individuals with a Spinal Cord Injury
- Universal Trail Access Information Project
- Married to a Chair: Adaptive Water Skiing
- Water Wednesday: Hydration 101
NCHPAD Expert Inclusion Specialists (EIS)
If you’re searching for accessible programs or resources, our team of expert inclusion specialists is here to help! The primary way to contact an EIS is through the NCHPAD Call Center. Our Call Center team works with individuals to enroll them in NCHPAD Connect, answer questions about programs or connect them to an EIS for community resources and technical assistance. Our EIS expertise is always free and available 7 a.m. – 7 p.m. Monday-Friday.
To reach the NCHPAD Call Center, call 866-866-8896 or email nchpad@uab.edu.
You can also find out more about the work of our EIS team here!