Yosemite National Park - Tioga Road

 Unlike the Yosemite Valley, Tioga Road is mostly a drive through for anyone who is not physically fit. There are plenty of trails but the mountainous terrain means they aren't accessible. We drove from the west to the east and our first stop was at Tuolumne Grove Trail. The trail is an old road with some of the asphalt still in place. It's only a mile to a hollow tree trunk- dead now but the stump is still standing - that can be walked through. We walked/rolled a short distance before we decided that the downhill grade was too steep. 

Our next stop was a large overlook with interpretive signs and a view of Half Dome.

An accessible trail, actually a sidewalk along the road with great views of the lake, starts at the picnic area and Sunrise Trailhead parking lot. This is the only truly accessible trail that we found along Tioga Road. It's about a mile one way and ends at a scenic picnic area overlooking a beach on the lakeshore. The beach is not accessible.

The Tuolumne Meadows Visitor Center hadn't opened for the season yet and we didn't try any of the trails. Some of the trails may be accessible with assistance but none are paved.

The roads west and east of Tioga Road are winding without guardrails in places. Use cation on the grades, both when descending and climbing, to avoid overheating your brakes or engine. Most of the parking lots have spaces where RVs will fit.    Yosemite National Park- Tioga Pass     37.800010, -119.875300

White Sands National Monument

The white sands of the monument were formed over thousands of years as rain water and snow melt, which dissolved gypsum from the San Andres Mountains, flowed into the Tularosa Basin. The shallow lake that formed dried up as the climate changed, leaving behind a large gypsum playa. Strong winds from the southwest are constantly breaking down the gypsum crystals into the fine sand of the dunes and piling them up into ever-changing shapes.

 The monument has a small visitor center with exhibits and a short video. A sixteen mile scenic drive winds through the dunes with stops at picnic areas and hiking trails. 

    The visitor center and theater are accessible. The Interdune Boardwalk is accessible however the area is off limits due to the 2024 crash of an Air Force jet. The pilot ejected before the crash and was uninjured but the area is not safe for visitors. The Playa Interpretive Trail is about 1/3 of a mile out and back. It's hard packed and accessible with assistance and leads to a seasonally wet area where gypsum crystals form. The interpretive signs are too high to be read from a seated position. The other trails and the dunes are not accessible with a standard wheelchair. 

The visitor center lot has long RV spots. Most of the other parking lots are large enough for any vehicle. Monument   32.77918, -106.17214

 

Trails on Sol Duc Hot Springs Road

 There are two short trails on Hot Springs Road - Salmon Cascades and Ancient Groves Nature Trail Loop. Both have descriptions on the Physical/Mobility Accessibility section of the park website. The section is a little misleading. The text reads: "Knowing that people have all different kinds of needs and abilities, the following trails have been evaluated in detail, by and for people with disabilities. You know best what is accessible to you, so read on to find details about what the surface of the trail is like, its width, slope, what parking options are nearby, and detailed descriptions of each part of the trail and any features that may affect your experience." But there's no way to know what type of disability the person or persons evaluating the trails have. 

The Salmon Cascades Trail is very short with a wide, hard packed dirt surface. It leads to a wooden deck that overlooks the cascades - no salmon running at this time of year.  Out 25' RV just fit in the pull-in parking spaces so there's no room for large RVs.

 Nothing about the Ancient Groves Nature Trail Loop is accessible. The first obstacle is a jumble of large roots and it doesn't get any better from there. We pushed on until we came to a very narrow, steep section with a drop off on one side and a hill on the other side. I thought that we would be okay if we just got past this section but it was too scary and dangerous and we ended up backing down. (I forgot to take a picture.) Parking is parallel to the road and long enough for any RV but may fill.  Sol Duc   48.02296, -123.92362

Sol Duc Campground

The campground is just a short distance from the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort which has four pools with different temperatures. Two of them are wheelchair accessible but, not being hot spring fans, we did not try them. However our daughter, son-in-law, my sister, and brother-in-law who joined us at the campground and cabins had a great time soaking multiple times. A half mile long trail goes from the campground to the resort. It's not wheelchair accessible due to steps and rough ground.

We camped in Loop B site 62 which is fairly flat and has a slight slope to the table. Many of the sites in Loop B are small and have tables that are not easily accessed. 

Loop A has one sites designated as accessible but we did not check it out. Campground  47.96504, -123.85299

 

Thomas Condon Visitor Center - John Day Fossil Beds

 The visitor center has a short video on the geology of the region and detailed displays about the animals entombed in rock formed by layers of ash, dust, and floods from multiple volcanic eruptions occurring over 40 million years. There's also a paleontology laboratory with large window so visitors can watch the tedious work of chipping rock to uncover fossils. Over 500 fossil are on display. 

The visitor center is accessible.  Fossil Beds National Monument has three units. Each has a number of short trails but due to the hilly terrain and rough ground surface only one is accessible for a very short distance so we did not go on any trails or to the other units.

  

The parking lot has long RV spaces. Visitor Center  44.55213, -119.646

 

Grand Teton National Park

 We haven't visited Grande Teton in years. The terrain blocks easy wheelchair access but we decided to give it another chance. The scenery is gorgeous so just driving through is amazing enough. Most of the activities such as hiking trails, campgrounds, lodges, and restaurants are along the Teton Park Road. Wishing to avoid the crowds we drove north along US 191 on the east side of the park.

Our first stop was Gros Ventre Campground. Even this early in the season campgrounds can be booked up but we didn't have a problem getting a site for one night at both GrosVentre  and Colter Bay Campgrounds. We camped in the no-generator section at Gros Ventre. The sites are short and the parking pads are gravel. Most of the campers are in tents. None of the sites are designated as accessible but they can be used. 

Loop D has thirty six electric sites; nine are accessible - $77.00 a night. Grand Teton campsites are much more expensive than other national parks. Even the non electric sites are $58.00! All of the sites in Loop D are paved and long enough for RVs. 

The next day, before starting our trip north, we stopped at the Craig Thomas Discovery Center which has good exhibits about the history of the park. It's accessible. The parking lot has long RV spaces.

A trail from the Discovery Center leads to the Murie Ranch Historic District. Margaret and Olaus Murie were early environmentalists who spent most of their lives studying the wildlife in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem and welcoming other conservation leaders into their home. In 1968, five years after Olaus's death, Margaret sold the ranch to the park in exchange for a life estate lease. Upon her death the ranch was established as a National Historic District and is managed in partnership with the Teton Science Schools. Cabins, that date from the 1920s when the property was a dude ranch, are used to house attendees at retreats and are not opened to the public. Tours of the Murie home are given once a day on weekdays. 

The Murie house has several steps up to the porch. The half mile trail to the ranch is not accessible due to a short section of loose, deep gravel. A dirt road also accesses the ranch. Short RVs will fit in the parking lot. 

Menor's Ferry Historic District is also near the Discovery Center. It's the site of William Menor's 1894 homestead. Menor operated a store, blacksmith shop, and the ferry that transported wagons, horses, and people across the Snake River. Several buildings are located on the site - the Mentor cabin/store; a shed with a collection of wagons and coaches; the Chapel of Transformation, a 1925 log church; and the cabin of Maude Noble who bought the ferry from Menor in 1918. The Noble cabin was the location of a 1932 meeting where plans were made to protect the valley from commercialization. 

 The Chapel has a ramp to the entrance but there's high threshold. The parking lot has RV spaces. 

The Menor's Ferry loop trail is rough and only accessible with assistance. The shed is the only building that's opened. 

The parking lot has RV spaces.  Instead of driving to this parking lot from Discovery Center we walked/rolled along the Grand Teton Pathway and Menors Ferry Road, about a mile one way. The pathway and road are in good condition and accessible. 

 Continuing north on US 191 we tried visiting Mormon Row but it was too crowded with no spaces left in the small lot or along the road.

Our next stop was the Cunningham Cabin. The parking lot is large enough for short RVs. The loop path to the cabin has steps, loose gravel, and a narrow sunken section. It's not accessible. 

We spent the night at Colter Bay Campground which has an odd arrangement of sites, at least in the loop we were in. All of the parking pads are along the sides of the road so there are lines of RVs on either side. I mistakenly choose a site in the generator section but fortunately there was only one noisy generator running on our loop. There are accessible sites that have electric hookups for a ridiculously high price per night - $83.00! 

A large parking lot with designated RV spaces is located at the Colter Bay Visitor Center. The Lakeshore Trail can be accessed from this lot by following the signs to the amphitheater and taking the paved path down the hill. The main trail is paved for short distance. We completed the 1 mile long first loop and found obstacles such as tree roots and loose rocks. The second loop goes up hill and has narrow spots. We did not attempt it.  

In conclusion, Grand Teton National Park is minimally wheelchair accessible. Go for the drive but don't expect to travel far off the road. Park  43.65546, -110.71771