

Resources
Accessible Travel Guides
A Wheelchair Rider's Guide to the Los Angeles and Orange County Coast (interactive guide, pdf version)
A Wheelchair Rider’s Guide: San Francisco Bay and Nearby Coast
General Coast Guides
The California Coastal Commission has produced an excellent series of guides to the coast, beginning with the California Coastal Resource Guide in 1987. All are worth having, even though some of the information in the older guides is now outdated.
Experience the California Coast is the Coastal Commission's three-book series covering the beaches and parks of Bay Area, central, and southern California, published between 2005 and 2009. These guides provide a wealth of detail on sites all along the coast, including beaches, public access ways, parks, campgrounds, nature preserves, aquariums, and museums, with detailed maps.
California Coastal Access Guide (2003) is an essential visitor handbook, with details about access and facilities along California's entire 1,100 miles of shoreline.
Access Organizations and Legal Information
Guidelines for Developed Outdoor Areas (includes beach access routes and trails)
Americans with Disabilities Act
National Center on Accessibility
Beach Wheelchairs
Specially designed chairs that roll over sand are available free of charge at many beaches. Most are manually operated and must be pushed by someone, but a few in southern California are motorized and can be operated independently. Each beach has its own policies regarding chair use. Typically they cannot be reserved in advance, but it's advisable to call before you visit to check availability. List of beaches (pdf) that had beach wheelchairs as of summer 2010.
Beach Wheelchairs For Purchase
Agencies and Organizations Promoting Coastal Protection,
Restoration, and Public Access
Guided Hikes and Outings for People with Disabilities
North Coast
San Francisco Bay Area
Bay Area Association of Disabled Sailors
Bay Area Outreach and Recreation Program
Environmental Traveling Companions
On the Level San Francisco
Walking In Sonoma County...Mostly
Santa Cruz Area
Parks
National and State Parks
Cabrillo National Monument (access page)
Point Reyes National Seashore (access page)
Golden Gate National Recreation Area (access page)
Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy (general information about GNRA)
California State Parks (access page)
Regional Parks
East Bay Regional Parks (access page)
Sonoma County Regional Parks (access page)
Trails Information and Organizations
Bay Area Hiker (accessible trails page for San Francisco Bay Area)
Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District (accessible trails page for San Francisco Bay Area)
California Coastal Trail
Coastwalk
Rails to Trails Conservancy
San Francisco Bay Area Wheelchair Accessible Trails
San Francisco Bay Trail
Discount Passes and Licenses
State Parks discount passes
National Parks discount passes
Fishing licenses
More About Coastal Places
Plants and Animals
Birds
Cornell Lab of Ornithology (general information about birds and bird-watching)
California County Geographic Birding Guide
Plants
California Academy of Sciences California Wildflowers
Wildflowers of the Central California Coast
General
Monterey County Birds, Cetaceans, Odes, Herps & More
Aquariums
California Academy of Sciences (Steinhart Aquarium)
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