Methods

Our team began the project during the 2023 winter term. At first, we were acquainted with our community partners and their project proposal. Then for 10 weeks the team conducted research through various methods such as accessibility briefs, literature reviews, and hearing from guest speakers.  Each team member was assigned a different topic on accessibility in outdoor recreation and presented a brief describing the unique barriers and current solutions for each individual identity such as race, age, or disability. The team read several sources each week with a wide range of intersecting topics such as accessibility, outdoor recreation, justice-adjacent values, and trail auditing. We were also fortunate enough to hear from various guest speakers who share their lived experiences with us to provide insightful perspectives for the project. Our guest speakers were Shannon Tyman, Margaret Robertson, Kristina Boe, and Ian Mackay. During this time, our team developed our team management plan and curated a criteria list for auditing accessibility on the trails. Furthermore, each team member chose a hiking trail from the community partner's list to collect initial information on the sites and create a profile before we visited them in the Spring. The criteria list was the following:

After determining the criteria we wanted to collect on each trail, we designed forms for data entry on the field as well as a Google spreadsheet for the final form of the data we gave to Travel Lane County - Eugene Cascade and Coast. We printed the data entry forms and used clipboards to record the measurements while out on the trails. When we measured the criteria on the trails we used several different tools.

1. Clinometer: Slope

2. Level: Cross - Slope 

3. Tape Measure: Width 

4. Measuring Wheel: Distance 

5. Camera: Document visual information such as signage, obstacles, seating, bathrooms, parking