Hoopengarner on Outdoors
509-582-1544
Disabled sportsmen no longer trapped
Having hunted or fished for more than 37 years, it's safe to say outdoor pursuits have been my lifeblood.
And, looking back, I've been fortunate to have had the physical wherewithal to trail a bird dog for miles, wade swifts creeks for trout or wallow through marsh muck after waterfowl.
However, it's what's around the next bend in life that causes some anxious moments.
All sportsmen, at some point, ponder the time when the mind is willing but the body won't budge.
For that reason, and many more, I am in awe of disabled and elderly sportsmen, who - though physically challenged in some way - manage to overcome their obstacles and take up the hunt.
Recently, I got a call from an 87-year-old sportsman who, along with his wife of 65 years, Margaret, had just moved to the Tri-Cities from Ann Arbor, Mich.
His name is Jack Pelton.
He called to talk about fishing, here and in Michigan where he plied the big water of Lake Michigan for walleye and salmon, and hunted white-tailed deer on the Upper Peninsula.
But that was many seasons ago, and memories often play tricks on reality.
Today, Pelton has trouble walking, his knees played out from high school football and 30 years on his feet as a metal worker.
Now, he fiddles more with prescription pill bottles than trolling plugs and an aluminum walker has become the companion instead of his beloved springer spaniel, Spook.
Despite his present situation, the fire still burns bright, and by the end of our chat, there was little doubt I'd be taking him fishing, even if I had to carry him to the boat.
Richland's Greg Greger also knows how rewarding it is to pursue your passions. Through the Richland Senior Center, he helped organize the Fishing Buddies program.
"The program got started about two years ago after I suggested putting a notice in the center's monthly bulletin about getting seniors interested in fishing together," he said. "We either match people up who want to go fishing, or we find someone to take them out."
This year, about 10 people signed up, including a 90-year-old fly fisherman whom Greger took to Mesa's Railroad Pond for rainbow trout.
"He didn't catch a thing, but I don't think he cared too much," Greger said. "He was just happy to be near the water."
For more information on Fishing Buddies, call 943-3951.
Some are veterans. Others have been injured on the job or in pursuit of their avocation or were born with a handicap. They are the state's disabled sportsmen.
And Rory Calhoun, a recreation accessibility specialist with the Interagency Committee for Outdoor Recreation in Olympia, is their staunch advocate.
Confined to a wheelchair, Calhoun knows first-hand how frustrating it is trying to compete with able-bodied sportsmen.
And since 1986, when the state Department of Fish and Wildlife passed its first disabled hunter laws, Calhoun has been wheeling himself to the front row to ask the state to do even more.
Today, he is pleased with the strides Washington has made to open the fields, woods and marshes to disabled hunters.
"Washington is actually a model other states look to when developing their disabled hunter laws. But there's still more to be done here in Washington," he said.
Calhoun estimates that since 1996, more than 4,000 hunters have been issued the Fish and Wildlife Department's Disabled Hunter Permit Card.
New opportunities are being developed for disabled hunters.
For example, disabled hunters with a state issued Disabled Hunter Orange Placard may be allowed to drive on some roads otherwise closed to all other unauthorized vehicles.
Disabled hunters also can obtain the Designated Hunter Companion Card, which allows licensed partners of disabled sportsmen to act on their behalf in the shooting or retrieving of wild game.
Calhoun also was instrumental in setting up Fish and Wildlife's disabled access information Web site link at www.wa.gov/wdfw.
The site lists available duck and goose hunting areas offering special access or other accommodations for disabled hunters, as well as information about road entry opportunities for big game hunters.
The state also offers a Designated Harvester Card to allow another licensed angler to assist the disabled angler in harvesting the daily limit of fish or shellfish.
For more information on hunting and fishing for the disabled, call 360-902-2460 or Calhoun at 360-902-3022.
For Tri-City hunters, the McNary National Wildlife Refuge offers two handicapped access waterfowl hunting blinds on its reservation-only Burbank unit and a third on the Peninsula Unit, which is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
The service also is building a 12-foot by 20-foot fishing deck for handicapped anglers at Quarry Pond, south of Burbank, on the agency's Two Rivers Unit.
The fishing platform, which will be constructed next month, will be built on piers and features an angled handrail for safe access to the water for casting.
"We're also looking at developing another handicapped fishing access area on the lower Walla Walla River on our Wallula Unit," said McNary Refuge Manger Rebecca Chuck. "We are aware that there is limited access to many of the region's popular fishing areas for handicapped anglers, and we're doing what we can to address that."
- Ken Hoopengarner has been the Herald's outdoor writer for 19 years. He can be reached at 582-1544 or via e-mail at khoopengarner@tri-cityherald.com
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