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Pugneys Country park (image by Wakefield Council)
Last weekend saw us take to the water at Pugneys Country Park in Wakefield for a fun-filled few hours on the water aboard open-top Canadian canoes.
Our activities were overseen by Mike, an instructor at Pugneys, who supervised the controlled ‘rough and tumble’ of a typical Open Country day out: safety always comes first, but we’re one of the more adventurous disability groups in Yorkshire. There was capsizing and water splashed about on the lake as we rafted up (lining up the boats next to eat other) and took it in turns to swap seats while still afloat.
We took twelve people in total including Sam from Open Country, volunteers and members. Our group was made up of mostly able-bodied individuals but we have taken wheel-chair users out on boats in the past. We don’t see obstacles when it comes to helping people with disabilities to access the countryside and we always try our best to make days out as accessible as possible.
After all that exertion we made our way over to Sandal Castle for refreshments at their café, unfortunately it was closed, but our hunt for snacks soon unearthed a treasure trove of ice cream at New Miller Dam where the day trip came to an end.
Do you want to have fun volunteering with us?
If you want to join us as a volunteer or find out more about Open Country and how we help people with disabilities to access the countryside, you should contact us or write a message on our Facebook wall.
I agree with your approach to disabilities and days out. My twin sister has CP and finds it difficult to walk but, as children, we went kayaking together and it was the best fun we’ve ever had. As we were both using our arms and not our legs, it was nice to feel that we could play a sport/leisure activity together. She was much better than me, because she uses a wheelchair and has very strong arms!