The Traveling Wheelchair

Rte. 88
Westport Point, MA
Phone: 508-636-8816
http://www.mass.gov/dcr/parks/southeast/hbch.htm

We decided to do another wheelchair accessibility review of Horseneck Beach since it was recently renovated and all new areas are now open. Our last review posted was based on my visit there early last summer and they have made many new changes. One of the Park Rangers told us that Governor Deval Patrick visited Horseneck Beach on Friday to view all the new renovations.

The cost of entry for disabled with handicap placards on their car/van is FREE! The cost for cars without handicap placards is $7. A season pass for a MA resident is $35 and for an out of state resident is $45. Horseneck Beach is very wheelchair friendly and even has beach wheelchairs that disabled persons can use. These beach wheelchairs are available at the Lifeguard Station which is located in the center area of the beach right under the two flagpoles. If you need a beach wheelchair you should ask the person at the entrance to call a lifeguard to see if one is available. They will call the lifeguards to help you.

These beach wheelchairs allow you to go in to the ocean a few feet. I have my own  Beach Wheelchair that my mom and dad gave me for my birthday. I’ve used ones in the past at Horseneck Beach but couldn’t go out more than a few inches because of the strong riptide that is often at this beach.

The ocean and waves can be very strong and powerful at this beach so be very careful when you are out in the water here. I’ve also encountered some jelly fish in the past! There is nothing anyone can do about natural forces. Truthfully, I prefer to go to beaches that have calmer waters. Lifeguards and EMTs are on duty at all times when this beach is open. There are also many Park Rangers who can help assist you if you need any help.

There are now three parking lots at Horseneck Beach. The middle parking lot is the original parking lot and has many wheelchair accessible spaces right up front. The handicap signs are painted on the pavement. The two new parking lots are located to the right and to the left of the middle one and there are not handicap accessible spaces marked at this time but we were told the handicap spaces would soon be placed right up front.

There are two brand new bath houses with changing areas, one at each end of the beach and in front of the two new parking lots. They are identical. Both bath houses have a wheelchair access from the parking lot to the pavement that leads to a wheelchair accessible ramp that will bring you up to the bathhouse.

There is a separate handicap/family restroom for a person in a wheelchair to use. It is a private large restroom with an accessible sink and toilet with all the ADA requirements in place. The regular men and women restrooms have large handicap stalls that can easily fit my wheelchair or beach wheelchair in that have all the required ADA grab bars in place. The toilets are real neat. They are Recycling Toilet Systems. The water uses no chemicals and the waste is composed in the equipment below the toilets.  What a great idea this is to Preserve our Environment!

The sinks are all wheelchair accessible and the pipes under the sinks are not exposed so they are all within the ADA guidelines. There are really nice new water fountain (bubblers) one can get a quick drink from and one is height for a person standing and the other is a height for a person in a wheelchair. I usually don’t drink water from bubblers but thought it was really nice to have one at a height for a person in a wheelchair!

There are outside showers that are accessible so you can rinse all the sand off after the beach . There are also outside changing areas which are very large and can easily fit any size wheelchair in. You can use these to change your clothes before and after the beach.

There are also two new wooden walkways at each end of the beach that lead from each of the new bath houses to the beach. They are very safe. They have wooden railings on each side and also have a grab bar all along both sides so someone disabled may hold on while walking on these walkways. Someone in a wheelchair may also find the grab bar handy to help pull them selves along the walkway for the walkways are very long.

In the middle of each walkway there is a new shaded shelter with benches for one to sit on to escape the hot sun or just sit and gather energy to proceed on the rest of the walkway to or from the beach. These walkways are very long but easy to maneuver an electric wheelchair along. One in a regular wheelchair may get tired if they propel it all along this walkway. A person pushing someone in a wheelchair may also get tired and need to take a break in the shaded area.

There are steps and a wheelchair accessible ramp to take to get off the walkway. In the parking lot that is to the left of the main entry, this ramp leads you to a long paved pathway that takes you to the middle part of the beach. The paved pathway is covered in places with sand that blew on it. The new walkway off the beach house on the right side of the main entrance parking lot also has a wheelchair accessible ramp but this one leads right onto the beach. The beach access in this location is much closer to the beach.

The only snack bar located at this beach is the old one and it is still located at the center of the beach. It has picnic tables that are not wheelchair accessible for the benches are attached and there is no place to fit a wheelchair at the table.

There are outhouses located in the area behind the snack bar because the old restrooms are now closed.  One of the outhouses is wheelchair accessible yet I hate using outhouses to use the restroom. I didn’t ask but think the outhouses may just be here tempoarily while they are renovating the old bathrooms. I would recommend that one in a beach wheelchair sit in an area near one of the new walkways that leads to a restroom in the new bath houses.

I think Horseneck Beach deserves FIVE STARS for wheelchair accessibility because of all the great work they’ve done to make it wheelchair accessible. Yet I would suggest that they place a wheelchair accessible table in the snack bar area like the Scusset Beach State Reservation has. Scusset Beach picnic tables have attached benches that are chained down yet the benches can swing out so a person in a wheelchair can sit at the table.