Autumn ADVENTURES Carrie-Ann Lightley travels to Scotland for a much needed and much anticipated break
I
am tentatively wheeling my way across a forest floor, with light dappling through the canopy of leaves and the unmistakable sound of water rushing somewhere nearby. Suddenly I come to a clearing, and ahead of me is the most beautiful waterfall. Using a wheelchair means I’ve never been able to access such natural tranquility, and after all of the stresses and strains of 2020 so far, I’m so grateful for this moment. I won’t pretend that accessible travel is ever easy, and travelling as a disabled person during a pandemic certainly brings an extra level of things to worry about – but, during my first trip of the year, the stars seemed to align, to remind me exactly why I love to travel. A September heatwave, comfortable accessible accommodation, an amazing piece of mobility technology, and stunning accessible natural environments all combined to make me fall in love with Scotland’s Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. This was a trip that had been planned many times, first for March and then June, and finally in September I had the joy of packing a suitcase. I had been invited by the owners of Wood Leisure, a family-owned holiday park business in Scotland, to review their new accessible caravan holiday home at Callander Woods Holiday Park in Perthshire.
ACCESSIBLE CARAVAN
The two bedroomed accessible caravan holiday home is modern, spacious and well equipped, with two comfortable twin bedrooms, a wet room, open plan lounge/dining room and accessible kitchen with lowered units. The larger of the two twin bedrooms has an overbed lifting pole to assist with turning and transferring, and the wet room has the usual support rails around the toilet, sink and shower, as well as a folding shower seat. The caravan is accessed via a ramp leading on to decking with outdoor seating, and there is a parking space alongside. I have fed back to the owners about making some accessibility improvements – a threshold ramp for the door, and some adjustments to the shower seating, would make it even more inclusive. I’m delighted to say that the feedback was responded to straight away and that Wood Leisure are committed to making improvements as soon as possible. The holiday park itself is in the popular tourist town of Callander, at the gateway to the Trossachs and the Scottish Highlands. Facilities include a children’s play area, fishing, laundry facilities and a dog walking area. The caravan holiday home is pet friendly, so my husband and I were joined on the trip by our little dog, Poppy.
OUTDOOR ADVENTURE This trip taught me that, for the outdoors to be truly accessible you need the right equipment. Some time ago the guys behind the amazing Trekinetic wheelchairs got in touch to ask if I’d like to trial their Trekinetic GTE all-terrain powerchair on my travels, and it seems that we picked the perfect trip for it. Forests, beaches, parks, and gardens; as well as shops, restaurants and pubs – the Trekinetic GTE meant I was able to get everywhere I wanted to go. Fast Aid Medical and Mobility, based in Midlothian, kindly loaned me their demo Trekinetic GTE and delivered it to me at the holiday park.
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