all those stairs
a look into the Access for All initiative in the Apostle Islands
Tucked away at the Northernmost tip of Wisconsin is a chain of islands. On these islands you can find red and gold sea caves, sandy beaches, bears, eagles, and some of the uncontested best kayaking in the United States.
The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore encompasses a chain of 21 islands on Lake Superior as well as a stretch of the mainland sea caves, accessible from the popular Meyer’s Beach.
Keyhole Arch along the Mainland Sea Caves. This arch is one of the most popular arches in the National Lakeshore! If you’ve seen a picture of the Apostle Islands sea caves, there’s a good chance it’s a photo of this arch.
Paddling the Mainland Sea Caves is an incredible experience— you launch from sandy Meyer’s Beach and paddle over clear blue water for about a mile towards distant red cliffs. As you get closer, you might hear the call of an eagle. The cliffs and caves themselves feel like a natural cathedral. In the early morning, mist sits on the Lake and rays of sunlight poke through the trees, lighting up the water in bright patches.
The dramatic sea caves of the Apostle Islands were formed by ancient braided streams depositing iron-rich sediments from the Iron Mountains in what is now Minnesota, in fine layers creating the sandstone you can see today. Since then, glaciers have carved out islands, and wind, waves, and ice have carved out the intricate details of the Apostle Islands Sea Caves.
In the hundreds of times I paddled these caves as a sea kayaking guide, it never got old. It’s the sort of place that is not only incredible to look at, but incredible to experience.
The sound of water echoes through the caves. You can feel the dramatic temperature changes as you paddle back into some of the darker caves, and run your hands over the rough sandstone. Here, you can experience geology and feel a part of the earth in an extremely rare way.
Cathedral Arch along the Mainland Sea Caves is a set of two arches & cave system. It’s large and open with green lichen dotting the cliff walls. Once upon a time it used to be three arches, but the third collapsed, leaving two arches and dramatic exposed red rock behind.
For me, the most incredible part of guiding trips along the Mainland Sea Caves was always watching paddlers enjoy the caves for the first time. Sea kayaking is a place where so many of our differences level out—
Kayaking is immersive and not competitive; the culture surrounding it is more about experience and working with the water than about bagging peaks. Sea kayaking itself is old, and has been a part of the way humans travel for as many as 10,000 years.
Today, our modern tandem boats allow us to work as a team to enjoy nature, and for people living with mobility challenges sea kayaking be an excellent opportunity to enjoy the outdoors.
For some, the last barrier to access between them and the Apostle Island’s Mainland Sea Caves is the 45-step set of stairs leading to Meyer’s Beach.
Janet Bardura’s Apostle Islands Story
Janet Bardura is a power wheelchair user and a person with a progressive disability who embarked on a kayak trip with Wilderness Inquiry to see the Apostle Islands Sea Caves. Listen to her tell her story in her own words below.
National parks, like the Apostle Islands, belong to all of us. Yet for the one in five Americans like Janet who live with mobility challenges, obstacles like those stairs can spell the difference between the adventure of a lifetime and a lifetime of being left behind.
The Access for All Initiative
The Apostle Islands National Lakeshore has the potential to become a hub for accessible recreation, and Friends of the Apostle Islands’ Access for All Initiative is working to remove as many barriers to access in the park as possible.
In partnership with the National Parks Service, Friends of the Apostle Islands has created accessible campsites, restrooms, and boardwalks on Sand Island, a wheelchair accessible overlook on the Little Sand Bay dock, an accessible campsite and amphitheater on Stockton Island and contributed to the creation of a variety of interpretative learning materials both at Visitor’s Centers and online.
Still, the 45 steps at Meyer’s Beach remain a major barrier to access to the Mainland Sea Caves, one of the most popular areas of the park. The Access for All Initiative proposes a 520-foot accessible ramp leading to both an overlook and providing access to Meyer’s Beach, and with that the mainland sea caves.
To help make places like this accessible to everyone, consider donating to the Access for All initiative below.
Why talk about access?
The vast majority of hiking trails, canoe routes, and outdoor activities are catered towards able-bodied people. National Parks and public lands are by nature meant to belong to everyone, but in reality many obstacles prevent people from accessing our parks.
One in four American adults live with some sort of disability, and much of our parks system offers extremely limited accommodations for people with mobility challenges.
It’s very easy for the average able-bodied outdoorsy person (such as myself) to blow off concerns of accessibility in parks because they doesn’t affect them directly, but it’s important for us to remember that we are all eventually going to encounter some sort of mobility challenge in our lifetimes, be it through the process of aging or through breaking a leg tomorrow.
Time outside is proven to improve mental health, combat stress, as well as improve physical health. Helping more people easily access to the outdoors is a matter of human rights & dignity; we all deserve the chance to enjoy the incredible spaces that are our National Parks.
Visiting the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore
Wilderness Inquiry offers Apostle Islands trips designed to accommodate a variety of people including wheelchair users.
The Apostle Islands are an excellent place for sea kayaking, hiking, and mountain biking. Keep in mind that paddling on Lake Superior can be dangerous and conditions change quickly. For this reason, book a guided tour to visit the sea caves.
For outfitter recommendations, hiking trails, where to camp, eat, stay, and more in the Apostle Islands and Bayfield, check out 30 Incredible Things to Do in the Apostle Islands.