As some of you know, I try to help handicapped anglers on the website, www.HATofMichigan.org . I just received this e-mail:
“I recently lost the use of my left arm which put a damper on my fishing , I live on the Ausable River near Mio. My question is can you help me find some one here in Mich. that sells a electric adapter for reeling a spining reel, I know they make them, Ive seen one on line but they are from a australian company, I would like to find someone here in Mi. that could help me with this.
ThankYou
Jeff”
Thank you for your effort GBF. I will forward it on. Ever since I started this site on handicapped fishing I have noticed a reluctance of people to help. From over 5000 hits, I have not received one location for handicappers to fish moving water. I am sure this is not because people are not generous or well meaning. I think it is perhaps because none of us like to think that one day we may be in a position to need such information. Thanks again for your concern. You are a true gentleman.
There aren’t that many disabled access fishing sites that I know of on moving water. Mother nature has a way of changing the river, regardless of where we want to fish, and where we put the trails.
Lower Dolores River, Colorado: Canyon Cabin CG. There is a disabled concrete path along a couple hundred yards of the river here. The river has moved a bit, and has damaged portions of the path. Open summer months. And yes, there are fish there.
Upper Dolores River, Colorado: Town of Dolores. There is a disabled platform or two along the river in town.
Uncompahgre River, Colorado. Pa-Co-Chu-Puk CG, Ridgway State Park. There is a concrete path along portions of the river in the campground, and a gravel path along more of it, that is doable with a motorized wheelchair. There are also two stocked ponds in the campground with paths around them.
San Juan River, NM. There are a couple platforms on the Texas Hole, but again, the river isn’t cooperating with placement.
Thanks DG,
I am mainly concerned with Michigan but I’ll add these at the bottom in case anyone is going out of state. I think Colorado and several other western states already have active web sites for the handicapped. Michigan has several but they are not for moving water and wild trout. That is where I am working. I have many good suggestions from this site as to how I might improve my efforts. As I recall, some of them were from you. Thanks for the input.
Good grief! Now I see your problem , it is very hard to find anything re -handicapped fishing anywhere on the net. I did find two stillwater access places in Michigan .
This link is to a Town in Michigan that needs to be emulated by every town and city in the US and Canada. Very progressive thinking by a City Official.
Sorry I couldn’t find any moving water handicapped fishing access sites.
In the 1980’s I and two other boat owners used to take handicapped kids and adults out fishing on our boats. I could comfortably take 4 at a time.
One day as I went to the Handicapped center to see if anybody wanted to go out with me ( there were usually more wanting to go than my boat could accomodate ) I was informed that they were cancelling the program because of insurance reasons. I would have to carry at least 2 million dollars worth of insurance and now the handicapped would have to be accompanied by one counsellor per each handicapped person , thus cutting in half the number of fishers per trip. They didn’t have the manpower to make it viable anymore so it all came to an end.
I got a call about 5 years later from the center that the rules have changed and they wanted to re-start the program. However I no longer had the boat.