Level 1 terrain

[sandlanders]

If a level 1 terrain usually means “wheelchair accessible”, does this mean that a person in a wheelchair can complete the cache on his/her own? Or does it just mean that a person in a wheelchair can easily come along on the cache hunt (like “stroller accessible”)?

When rating our caches, I’m thinking of people I know in various wheelchair situations (none of whom cache) and would they like doing the find. Could they come along, maybe spot the location or container, but not be able to reach the container due to it’s placement (too high, in rocks, off the path just a bit, etc.)? Would a longer journey but on flat ground/pavement be OK for motorized wheelchairs, or for ones being pushed, but not for self-propelled ones because of the distance? Would drive-up caches be OK to list as a level 1 if the limited mobility person would enjoy the ride, be able to spot the hide, etc., just not get out of the car to physically claim the cache?

I know we can elaborate in the cache description, but basically, what I want to know is if people search out caches based on level one or wheelchair accessible, will they be disappointed if they find that a caching buddy may have to make the actual grab for them?

[Team Honeybunnies]

I’ve always been of the belief that 1* terrain means wheelchair-accessible period. There are definitely people who use those ratings to seek challenges they are capable of.

[zuma]

THB is correct. See http://www.clayjar.com/gcrs/ for details.

zuma

[EnergySaver]

I agree with this too.
A rating of 1 should mean that someone in a wheelchair all by themself, should be able to find and get the cache totally solo.

This might seem strict/harsh … but this just means there are not that many true 1 caches out there. If it can’t be done solo, then the rating needs to be a bit higher, that’s just the way it is.

[greyhounder]

a 1 terrain SHOULD mean accessible to all, but keep in mind that this is very subjective…

When I cache with Mom we only seek terrain 1 or 1.5. We’ve (well, I’ve) had to climb for these terrain ratings! This can be frustrating. I usually send the hider a little suggestion in these cases. It’s their choice whether or not to change the rating.

I like to see the accessible attribute used, actually. Then I know the person has considered accessibility.

Bec

[Team Deejay]

Actually the idea is “handicapped accessible”, not “wheelchair accessible”. That means flat, paved, no overgrowth, and less than a 1/2 mile hike (I interpret this as 1/2 mile round trip hike). I would say that roughly 50% of the terrain 1 caches meet this standard.

As there are many different reach levels for wheelchairs/scooters/people on crutches, there is no standard for height of the hide, i.e. a low hide that is reachable by someone in a wheelchair might not be reachable by someone on crutches. Of course, a hide higher than 6 feet is probably not going to meet any handicapped accessible standard, but I would say that from 0 to 5 feet off the ground should qualify. Remember that people who are permanently handicapped usually use reachers or other devices to extend their reach. It is the guy with the broken leg, hobbling on crutches, that is likely to be unprepared.

[RSplash40]

I disagree with the rating “guidelines”, and argue that hiders should make use of the attributes more, for example:

I personally feel that a film can hanging on a pine tree at the edge of a baseball field is worth no more than a 1/1 to get to and retrieve.

By the guidelines, this would probably not rate as a handicap accessible hide, it might but most likely not.

That is where the owner should be flagging the Wheelchair Accessible attribute and those who are looking for this type of hide can be more certain of its accuracy.

I agree with TDJ that there is some differences on the handicapped definition, and 0-5 feet sounds reasonable.

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