Planning your Field Trips Using our Physical Demand Rating

Trip titles in the Field Trip Guidebook are color coded with a physical demand rating to help you decide whether the activity level matches your abilities.

Each trip is unique in its location and activities. Please reach us at FieldTrips@WisConservation.org or (608) 409-3123 if you have questions about the physical demand levels or accommodations for a specific Field Trip.

Using standard and outdoor wheelchairs on Field Trips

Wheelchair-accessible trips now have a symbol next to them in the guidebook. Trips with this symbol have accessible parking spaces and bathrooms (unless noted), no stairs, and ADA compliant surfaces. People who use walkers or other mobility devices are welcome on these trips.

2026 wheelchair-accessible trips and their trail descriptions:

14. Spring Ephemerals & Edible Plants in an Urban Gem – May 3 (Milwaukee Co.): 2 miles, crushed gravel, 3+ places to sit, slow pace

45. Tour UW-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences – May 15 (Milwaukee Co.): 2 miles, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing

51-A. Introduction to Foraging – May 16 (Dane Co.): 1 mile, easy, flat, wide trail, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, slow pace

51-B. Introduction to Foraging – June 6 (Dane Co.): 1 mile, easy, flat, wide trail, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, slow pace

62. Growing Shiitake Mushrooms: Kemp Station – May 20 (Oneida Co.): mostly stationary and seated

63. Whooping Crane Reintroduction – May 21 (Juneau Co.): 2 miles, paved, gravel, boardwalk, optional stairs to observation deck, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 1-2 places to sit, slow pace

64. The Inside Scoop on Devil’s Lake State Park – May 21 (Sauk Co.): 1 mile, 5-ft wide paved trail, level, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, several places to sit, slow pace

85. Macroinvertebrate Survey: Baird Creek – May 30 (Brown Co.): 0.25 mile, paved, dirt, small descent, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 1-2 places to sit, slow pace

86. Snapshots of Urban Wildlife – May 30 (Milwaukee Co.): 2.5 miles, crushed gravel, slight incline, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 1-2 places to sit, slow pace

94. Fish Passage along the Milwaukee River – June 5 (Ozaukee Co.): car caravan with short walks, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, slow pace, can bring your own portable chair

107. Research for Restoration: Orchids & Dwarf Lake Iris – June 8 (Door Co.): 1 mile, flat, boardwalk, smooth trail, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 3+ places to sit, slow pace

118. Mississippi River Boat Cruise – June 12 (Winona, MN): seated on boat

121. Get Hooked! Fly Fishing for Beginners – June 13 (Dane Co.): 100 yards, mowed grass, paved, slow pace, 3+ places to sit, can bring your own portable chair

143. Become a Purple Martin Landlord – June 23 (Dane Co.): mostly stationary, can bring your own portable chair

160. Sustainability at Madison Children’s Museum – July 8 (Dane Co.): less than 1 mile, flat, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 3+ places to sit, slow pace

162. Discovering Dragonflies & Damselflies – July 10 (Milwaukee Co.): 1.5 miles, 6-ft wide and mostly paved trail, some mowed grass, 1-2 places to sit, slow pace

179-A. Creating Spaces for Crane Conservation – July 18 (Sauk Co.): 0.5 mile, paved, 3+ places to sit

179-B. Creating Spaces for Crane Conservation – July 18 (Sauk Co.): 0.5 mile, paved, 3+ places to sit

191. Lakeshore State Park: Urban Oasis – July 24 (Milwaukee Co.): 2 miles, 12-ft wide paved trail, 3+ places to sit, slow pace

196-A. Catamaran Tour: the Nation’s Largest Freshwater Estuary – July 31 (Ashland Co.): 0.25 mile, gravel, paved

196-B. Catamaran Tour: the Nation’s Largest Freshwater Estuary – Aug 14 (Ashland Co.): 0.25 mile, gravel, paved

199-A. UW Zoological Museum Tour & Mammal ID Skills – Aug 6 (Dane Co.): less than 1 mile, indoors, slow pace

199-B. UW Zoological Museum Tour & Mammal ID Skills – Aug 7 (Dane Co.): less than 1 mile, indoors, slow pace 

209. Sketching in the UW Zoological Museum – Aug 15 (Dane Co.): 100 yards, indoors, mostly seated

213. Save the Oaks! Managing Oak Wilt – Aug 18 (Portage Co.): 1 mile, crushed rock, wood chips, boardwalk, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 3+ places to sit, slow pace

235. Bird Banding at an Urban Stopover Site – Sept 16 (Milwaukee Co.): 1 mile, 6-ft wide and mostly paved trail, some wood chips, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 3+ places to sit, slow pace, can bring your own portable chair

263. Sunset Trolley Tour: Cranes of Navarino – Oct 9 (Shawano Co.): mostly sitting on trolley

264. A Night at the Observatory – Oct 9 (Waukesha Co.): 0.5 mile, mowed grass in darkness, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, slow pace

268. Behind the Scenes at the Wisconsin State Herbarium – Oct 11 (Dane Co.): 0.25 mile, indoors, short walks

271. Crex Meadows: Crane Roosting Caravan – Oct 16 (Burnett Co.): car caravan with stops at viewpoints, not required to leave car

274. Saw-whet Owl Migration: Carpenter Nature Center – Oct 22 (St. Croix Co.): mostly seated indoors, optional 0.25 mile walk on flat paved trail

280. Tips & Tricks to Mastering Waterfowl ID – Nov 7 (La Crosse Co.): mostly indoors, minimal walking from car to viewing platform

Use an all-terrain outdoor wheelchair

2026 Field Trips with Outdoor Wheelchairs to use on-site

Outdoor wheelchairs, as shown above, have rubber tank-like tracks that can easily ride over the dirt and grass. The Field Trips below have outdoor wheelchairs on site to use during on the trip. Contact us for details on reserving an outdoor wheelchair for use during one of these Field Trips: FieldTrips@WisConservation.org

104. Fair Meadows SNA: Prairie in Bloom – June 7 (Rock Co.): 1.5 miles, flat, mowed, limited shade, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 1-2 places to sit, slow pace

265. Exploring Mosquito Hill – Oct 10 (Outagamie Co.): 3 miles, dirt and paved trails, mostly flat, some steep climbs, longer (15+ minutes) periods of standing, 3+ places to sit, slow pace

276. Glacial Ghosts of Whitnall Park – Oct 24 (Milwaukee Co.): 1 mile, uneven ground, possible muddy conditions with rain, moderate elevation change, slow pace

Access Ability Wisconsin

Access Ability Wisconsin (AAW) was created to facilitate and provide the means for individuals with mobility challenges to access and enjoy Wisconsin’s natural resources, and to provide recreational opportunities for all physically challenged people, not just wheelchair users, but anyone, regardless of age, with a permanent or temporary mobility challenge who wants to enjoy the Wisconsin outdoors.

AAW has all-terrain Outdoor Wheelchairs (OWC) which use rubber tank-like tracks available to reserve and use free of charge at several locations throughout the state. You can reserve an OWC through AAW and tow it to other locations using an AAW enclosed trailer. Use the chair on your own outdoor excursion or on one of our Field Trips (contact us to discuss options).

Watch all-terrain wheelchairs in action: AAW video footage

More Resources for Exploring the Outdoors

Open the Outdoors is your resource for all of the available recreation options for individuals with disabilities.

Find out more: Wisconsin DNR – Open the Outdoors

Banner photo by Caitlin Williamson. Photo of family with all-terrain outdoor wheelchair courtesy of Riveredge Nature Center. Photo of person in all-terrain wheelchair posing in front of trailer courtesy of Access Ability Wisconsin.