National Parks are our crown jewels we must continue to offer benefits to everyone who wishes to visit them
26 November 2018
Terrain hopper is dedicated to making sure everyone has access to the very best of British countryside. As a member of Campaign for National Park’s corporate network, Andrew North tells us why the company is dedicated to our vision of more accessible National Parks.
It really should be argued that the National Parks are some of the country’s finest jewels in the crown. Maybe the finest. That’s why we’ve got to make sure people have access to the very best the British countryside has to offer, from north to south, east to west.
The Campaign For National Parks is at the forefront of ensuring accessible parks for all, ensuring that people can get around them in an environmentally sustainable way. That’s something at TerrainHopper that we endorse whole-heartedly. Along with the added health and social benefits of being out in the countryside, protecting both the landscape and wildlife whilst boosting local economies… we agree with it all.
Accessible adventures await with Terrain Hopper.
Our experience at TerrainHopper though comes from a slightly different perspective. We design and make all-terrain wheelchairs… the TerrainHopper. Initially, we envisaged people using them to go to places like the beach, dragging the family along so everyone could experience the crashing waves, ice creams and sand getting into every possible nook and cranny. But…
Over the time, we’ve met intrepid adventurers with disabilities who have been unable to get out into the National Parks but have yearned to do so. That’s why the ‘accessible for all’ campaign is such a vital one. But these intrepid folk have wanted to do more than sit in the car and watch people don their hiking gear and set off up hills and mountains. These adventurers have wanted to get out of the car and tramp up this hill, or that dale, or that mountain.
That’s why it’s vital that the Campaign for National Parks builds upon its successes to date and continues pushing ahead with its forward thinking vision for the National Parks. From the ‘big picture’ of transport infrastructure all the way through to the minutiae of elements such as public rights of way being used properly by hikers and landowners alike.
One of our most intrepid National Park adventurers is Debbie North. She’s taken the baton of access in the countryside and flourished it with aplomb. With the TerrainHopper she’s been able to enjoy the National Parks, visiting places such as Rogan’s Seat in the Yorkshire Dales, Blencathra and Skiddaw in the Lake District and… been able to cross coast to coast travelling through three National Parks – the Lake District, the Yorkshire Dales and the North York Moors. Regardless of the quality of the TerrainHopper – and it is a fine machine, even if we do say so ourselves – it wouldn’t have been possible if the vast majority of the public right of way network hadn’t been maintained with both a love and understanding of the National Parks.
Not much stands in the way of Debbie North! Terrain hopper wants to see a more accessible future for the National Parks.
That’s why it’s so important that we continue to build upon the success of such initiatives as ‘accessible for all’ and make sure they’re not just ‘flash in the pan’ projects that fade with time. From our point of view, from Debbie’s point of view, our National Parks… our crown jewels… must continue to offer benefits to everyone who wishes to visit them.
By Andrew North
Click here to find out more about the work of Terrain Hopper.
Terrain hopper is a member of our corporate network, supporting our efforts to make National Parks accessible for everyone. If you’re a business interest in supporting our work get in touch today by emailing info@cnp.org.uk