At times the going was tough. At the Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Fremont, she found herself alone in the blazing heat, sliding sideways on a hill as her motorized chair struggled to get up a steep trail. In the Marin Headlands, on a coastal trail starting at Rodeo Beach, she encountered a locked gate with deeply rutted paths around it--impossible to navigate alone.

Yet the trips were often inspirational, even moving. On that same troublesome trail in the Marin Headlands, on a perfect summer day, she stopped to view the ocean below and the wildflowers around her. She listened to the birds, the surf, and a foghorn in the distance. "It was breathtaking," she said.

She came away from these explorations with a powerful awareness of the fragility of the coastal and Bay ecosystems and an appreciation of the farsighted citizens who saved the Bay and the coast from what at one time had seemed inevitable destruction by reckless development.

Her greatest surprise was "how much I found that would be manageable for people in wheelchairs." Access has improved considerably since the Conservancy published its first wheelchair rider's guide to this area, in 1990. Under the federal Americans with Disabilities Act, standards have been established for facilities including restrooms, entranceways, and drinking fountains. More specific rules on trails, beaches, and camping areas are currently under review by the United States Access Board, which makes recommendations (see "More Parkland Access").

All this is progress, but Lewkowicz hopes that, over time, the boundaries between those with mobility limitations and everyone else will dissolve as more architects embrace "universal design," a concept promoting buildings and parklands that don't require special handicapped access features. Access "does not have to stick out like a sore thumb," she says. For example, a wooden ramp edged by greenery can often replace outdoor stairs--and be used and enjoyed by everyone.

A pioneer in expanding boundries, Lewkowicz also hopes that the new wheelchair rider's guide will inspire others with wheelchairs or canes to do some pioneering of their own in the Bay Area's diverse and often stunning recreational spaces.

Shirley Skeel's last article for Coast & Ocean was "Spartina Warrior: Katy Zaremba" in the Autumn 2004 issue.