NYPA's ABLE ERG Explores Inclusive Recreation - Rochester Accessible Adventures

This summer, more than 30 members of NYPA’s ABLE Employee Resource Group (ERG) traded the conference room for the canal — spending a full day at Hudson Crossing Park to experience, first-hand, what inclusive recreation actually looks, sounds, and feels like. Together, they cast lines, scanned the treetops and meadows for feathered creatures, rolled down a sensory trail, paddled kayaks, and cruised aboard an accessible pontoon boat.

It wasn’t a presentation about accessibility, though. It was a day of doing. A day of being – in an inclusive space.

Why ABLE, and why this matters

The ABLE ERG brings together staff from the New York Power Authority and the New York State Canal Corporation who care deeply about disability inclusion. For many members, this work is personal — they live with a disability themselves, or they love someone who does. That lived experience shows up as real passion for building a New York where everyone can get outside and belong – and also matches well with the work that is happening through the Accessibility Education Program RAA is conducting for NYPA and NYS Canal Corporation!

ABLE: “Abilities Beyond Limits and Expectations”

That passion is exactly why a hands-on day made sense. You can read about accessible design all you want, but nothing compares to feeling the difference a well-placed transfer bench, supportive rails and straps, a firm accessible path, or a thoughtfully presented birding excursion makes on your day at the park.

RAA’s Executive Director (on right) talks with NYS Canal Corporation staff to give updates on the Accessibility Education Program.

One park, many ways to belong

Hudson Crossing Park, one of RAA’s Inclusion Partners through the Accessibility Education Program, is a wonderful example of what happens when accessibility is intentionally planned for. Over the course of the day, ABLE members moved through station after station — each one an invitation to try something new.

Cycling

RAA’s Inclusion Partner, Erie Canal Boat Company, hauled in adaptive cycles for the event, introducing guests to a wide variety of cycle options. Some people had literally never cycled before, and were very pleased with the comfort and support of the three-wheeled cycles. All of them were excited to tell someone they know about these options that exist along the Canalway!

Left: A woman smiles broadly as she tries out a handcycle on a paved pathway. Top Right: Two more staff are trying our recumbent cycles — left bike has upright steering, right bike has lowered steering on the sides. Lower Right: A guest gets pointers from Peter (ECBC) before heading out to the trail.

Fishing

Adaptive equipment and accessible shoreline access meant everyone could give a try at casting a fly-fishing line, whether standing or seated. It’s a small thing that turns out to be a big thing: the difference between watching from a distance and actually being in the moment.

A guest tries their hand at fly fishing with the help of an expert. RAA’s newly acquired Access Trax create a firm, stable pathway across the grass.

Birding

Binoculars – or monoculars — up, voices down. Birding is a reminder that inclusive recreation isn’t only about mobility — it’s about creating spaces where people can engage at their own pace, in their own way, and simply enjoy being present in nature. Guests were treated to a welcoming birding excursion across the meadow and along the Sensory Trail.

The Sensory Trail

A trail designed to be experienced through touch, sound, and scent — not just sight — welcomed participants of all abilities. It’s a beautiful demonstration that “accessible” and “delightful” are the same design goal, not competing ones.

Top Left: HCP has several raised and wheelchair accessible garden beds guests can help plant and maintain. Top Right: Colorful drums along the Sensory Nature Trail invite guests to use sound to communicate in nature. Bottom: The firm pathway leads to viewing points like this accessible platform.

Kayaking

With accessible launches and adaptive supports, staff got out on the water under their own power. For many, that first push off from shore is where the concept of “inclusion” stops being abstract and becomes something you can feel in your arms and see on the horizon.

Top Left: Guest uses the supportive straps on the BoardSafe adaptive kayak launch to support their egress from the kayak. Top Right: A guest is supported as they enter their kayak and prepare to launch. Bottom: HCP Staff highlight the adaptive equipment they have on site for their guided excursions as a filming crew records their moves.

Accessible Pontoon Boat Cruise

The pontoon cruise brought the group together on the water — proof that an accessible vessel doesn’t mean a lesser experience. Everyone aboard, everyone included, everyone taking in the same view. Guests were grateful to learn about the adaptations Mohawk Maiden Cruises, one of RAA’s Inclusion Partners, have made to their pontoon boat to create a ramped entry and versatile space on board to accommodate people who use mobility equipment.

Guests prepare to leave the dock for their tour of the nearby lock; Mohawk Maiden Cruises highlights their newly renovated pontoon boat, with the ramp in upright position here.

The real lesson: inclusion is designed, not accidental

Accessible fishing stations, firm and navigable trails, adaptive launches, a boarding-friendly pontoon — each is the product of intentional design and strategic planning. That’s the heart of the message our team hopes ABLE members carried home. Inclusion isn’t a ramp you add at the end. It’s a decision you make at the beginning, and then keep making at every step.

When you plan for the full range of human ability from the outset, you don’t just accommodate people — you invite them in. And the experience is richer for everyone.

For an ERG whose members know the stakes personally, seeing that principle in action — not on a slide, but on the shoreline — is what makes a day like this so fabulous.

Guests pause for a photo after disembarking from their Mohawk Maiden tour. All smiles!

Looking ahead

Days like this one are part of a much bigger effort. Through the Accessibility Education Program, Rochester Accessible Adventures is contracted by NYPA and the NYS Canal Corporation to bring inclusive recreation to communities all along New York’s canal corridor by mentoring and training businesses, organizations, and villages along the way. Hudson Crossing Park shows what’s possible when a park is built for everyone — and it’s a preview of what we’re working to make the standard, not the exception, across the state.

Our deepest thanks to the ABLE ERG for showing up with open minds, good humor, and a genuine commitment to inclusion. We are excited to hear how what you experienced at this workshop will carry over into your work and daily life — and help us champion it and move it forward!

Rochester Accessible Adventures is a New York State nonprofit working toward systems-change in inclusive recreation and tourism. Learn more about our Inclusion Partner model and the On the Canals Accessibility Education Program at www.RochesterAccessibleAdventures.org.