Our family enjoyed fulfilling vacations even while camping with chronic illness and physical limitations endured by Carole. True, adaptations were necessary, but the boys and I gladly adjusted so all of us could spend time together admiring the natural world.
Family vacation times included several visits to Lassen Volcanic National Park with its indescribable mountain and volcanic scenes offering a feast of visual grandeur. We visited and camped at other National Parks, some several times: Yosemite, Sequoia, Yellowstone, Glacier, Rainier, and the Olympic Rain Forest. We camped in state parks and national forest campgrounds from Washington state to California, enjoying desert terrain, high mountain lakes, and the Pacific Coast.
As you read about our experiences of camping with chronic illness, I hope it inspires you to think of fun family activities you can do.
I begin with our first vacation after Carole’s initial injuries when we still thought she would recover. These thoughts are taken from our book.
1979
Loving these sunbreaks and rainbow days during the summer of 1979, we journeyed to Yosemite National Park in the Sierra Nevada Mountains to explore the trails, waterfalls, lakes, and trees. Towering mountains rose 7,000 to 13,200 feet. The streams, pools, lakes, and hiking trails made a fascinating adventure into nature’s wonders. Tom, Bill, Carole, and I enjoyed hiking and tent camping. Tom and Bill climbed large rocks and a tree here and there. The boys and I floated on the Yosemite River’s refreshing icy-cold water on a hot summer day. The four of us hiked to see backcountry beauty as Carole could still walk long distances unaided. Of course, the activity kept our appetites alive and well for Carole’s cooking skills to quell. These times of family fun and enjoying each other have been a most fulfilling gift of life.
Yearly vacations became times of travel, seeing nature’s beautiful places. Recalling camping in state and national parks evokes nostalgic memories of joys our family shared.
1984
Our Yellowstone National Park trip remains an outstanding memory. We delighted in hiking the aesthetically pleasant forest and volcanic area trails. We oohed and aahed and wowed at scenes so unusually spectacular that we could find no intelligible words worthy of them in our vocabulary. Nature’s abundant remarkable phenomena lured us into investigating and enjoying the fascinating sites. Mammoth Hot Springs was shaped as though landscaped with flat spaces, resembling steps carved in a rock cliff. Mineral colors drew us to gaze with wonder into numerous pools of water to see multicolored rocks beneath. Carole, in her wheelchair, the boys, and I viewed sights of geysers, hot springs, and bubbling mud pots. Scenic Blacktail Pond was encircled with a profusion of goldenrod flowers. In 1984, Morning Glory Pool’s color was a mixture of deep sky blue and aqua teal. At that time, a boardwalk wide enough for a wheelchair encompassed this amazing treat of nature’s alluring beauty.
People in wheelchairs can tour many of Yellowstone’s natural wonders. We had rented a chair for this trip; shortly thereafter, we bought one. Our teenage sons pushed their mother in her wheelchair so she could see more scenic park attractions. We made some unlikely places accessible by one of us holding each side of her wheelchair and one pushing from behind. Using this method, we explored many fascinating attractions. We saw the great falls of the Yellowstone River. What a magnificent sight! Down a trail from Old Faithful Geyser, we saw rainbows transform Riverside Geyser into a uniquely beautiful scene, one among many.
Summing up
Carole and I hope this peek at our experiences stimulates your imagination to envision accommodations for your situation, so you, too, can enjoy fulfilling family times. Or, if you’re healthy but know someone with limitations, maybe you can help them. The vacation doesn’t have to be camping. Maybe you prefer exploring the city, or even traveling. Happy imagining!
What activities, with help, do you enjoy?
Check out other types of fun times you can have.
Read more about our rainbow days—good times—in our book: Sunbreaks in Unending Storms, available at Amazon, Kobo, and Barnes & Noble. Or ask your library to order it.
