ACCESSIBILITY

Outdoor Recreation Opportunities for People of All Abilities

The Division of Parks and Recreation is dedicated to providing all visitors equal access to experience the outdoors.

Universal Access in NH State Parks and Historic Sites means providing recreation opportunities for everyone regardless of differences in ability. NH Division of Parks and Recreation welcomes all visitors to explore outdoor recreation on state lands

Accessibility Features:

Reserved parking spaces
Wheelchair ramps
Beach wheelchairs
Hardened surfaces on trails and walkways
Accessible restrooms
Roll-in showers
Benches in showers and changing rooms
Easy-to-reach campsites

Park Facilities

Visitor Centers, restrooms, dressing rooms, park stores, and pit toilets meet accessibility codes statewide. Family bathrooms are being added to new facilities and when we renovate existing facilities.

Parks that offer family bathrooms include:

Hampton Beach State Park, Seashell Area
North Hampton State Beach
Jenness State Beach
Monadnock State Park
Moose Brook State Park, campground
Bear Brook State Park, Beaver Pond Campground and Bear Hill Cabins
Franconia Notch State Park, Lafayette Campground
Jericho Mountain State Park
Umbagog Lake State Park

Camping

Sleeping under the stars is a fun way to experience the outdoors night and day. We offer various camping experiences, such as, full-service RV hookups, primitive camping, cabin, lean-to’s and yurt sites. All campgrounds offer accessible sites that include accessible picnic table and fire ring. Other accessible facilities such as showers, laundry and dishwashing stations are offered at selected locations Reserve your campsite online through ReserveAmerica or by calling 1-877-nhparks (1-877-647-2757).

Showers, Laundry and Dishwashing Stations

White Lake State Park – Showers & Dishwashing
Lake Francis State Park – Showers & Laundry
Moose Brook State Park – Showers & Dishwashing
Umbagog Lake State Park – Showers, Dishwashing & Laundry
Bear Brook State Park, Beaver Pond Campground – Showers & Dishwashing
Jericho Mountain State Park – Showers, Dishwashing & Laundry
Monadnock State Park, Gilson Pond Area – Showers, Dishwashing & Laundry

Accommodations

Pawtuckaway State Park – Cabin
Greenfield State Park – Lean-to
Milan Hill State Park – Yurt
Jericho Mountain State Park – Cabin
Deer Mountain Campground - Cabin

Trails

Trails provide a way to experience the natural environment including wildlife watching and hiking to scenic views. The following parks offer trails that most visitors can enjoy.

Odiorne Point State Park
A paved recreational trail along Route 1A and natural surface network of trails are available at the park. Obstacles may be common but not substantial or intended to provide challenge.

Bear Brook State Park
The 40 mile network of trails at the park provide a wide variety of challenges. The One-Mile Trail (Catamount Pond Area) is a level, natural surface trail that is can be accessed by most persons. Obstacles may be common but not substantial or intended to provide challenge.

Cathedral Ledge State Park
A short walk from the parking area will take you to a view of the valley (fully developed trail, obstacles not present). Visitors can continue to the ledges with moderate difficulty for other views.

Franconia Notch State Park
The 8 mile paved recreational trail links all the major attractions in Franconia Notch. A new accessible trail at the Old Man Plaza takes visitors to an accessible fishing platform.

Rail Trails
Rail Trails are a generally level, however, surfaces vary from unimproved with rails and ties on the trail to improved with smooth surfaces suitable for most visitors. For more information on individual rail trails.

Playgrounds

Ready-made fun to keep the kids busy. Several parks have playgrounds that include accessible features.

Sunapee State Beach
Bear Brook State Park, Beaver Pond Campground and Day-Use Area
Greenfield State Park, Day-Use Area
Ellacoya State Park
Winslow State Park
White Lake State Park
Odiorne Point State Park
Monadnock State Park, Gilson Pond Campground

Swimming

Ocean, lake and river swimming opportunities are offered statewide. Some beaches have wheelchairs to assist visitors in navigating uneven and soft surfaces. These wheelchairs are available on a first-come service and can be obtained from the lifeguard.

Lakes
Most lake front beaches are maintained as natural unmodified surface with some obstacles.

Sunapee State Beach – Beach chair available
Ellacoya State Park – Beach chair available
White Lake State Park – Beach chair available
Pawtuckaway State Park – Beach chair available

Oceanfront
The ocean shoreline is a dynamic ever changing area that is twice daily inundated by tides. The beach sand can be very soft and not suitable for all adaptive equipment or maintained as a natural beach where visitors can expect to encounter rocky areas with unstable surfaces.

Hampton Beach State Park, Seashell Area
- Beach chairs
- Access ramps and mats across the soft sand to almost the high tide mark
Hampton Beach State Park, North Beach Area
- Ramp and platform at 18^th Street access, platform may be inundated by high tide
North Hampton State Beach
- Access ramp, beach is unmodified surface with significant obstacles
Jenness State Beach
- Access ramp, beach is unmodified surface with significant obstacles
Wallis Sands State Park
- Seasonal access mat installed to mean high tide mark

Fishing

Shorebank angling is permitted at many lakefront parks outside the swimming area. Access will depend on site conditions and are generally unmodified surfaces with significant obstacles.

Other Power Driven Mobility Devices (OPDMD) Policy

The use of wheelchairs and manually powered mobility aids are allowed anywhere foot traffic is allowed if the device meets the ADA definition of a wheelchair which is; a device designed primarily for use by an individual with a mobility disability for the main purpose of both indoor and outdoor locomotion. These devices are not OPDMDs or motor vehicles. The full text of the policy can be found HERE (need a hyperlink).

OPDMDs that are powered by gas-powered internal combustion engine are prohibited on all State Reservations. All OPDMDs are to move at the speed of the pedestrians on similar terrain.

Type, Dimension & Weight Criteria	Terrain Description	Examples	Permitted Areas
Device does not exceed 36” wide, 48” in length and weighs less than 500lbs.	Designed for use on soft, uneven, steeply graded or rocky surfaces.	Segway PT Electric scooter Electric bicycle	Non-motorized trails Dispersed recreational use. Forest road
Device does not exceed 48” in width or greater than 95” in length and weighs less than 1500 lbs.	Designed for use on exterior walkways or routes.	Segway PT Electric scooter Electric bicycle Electric Golf Cart	Rail trail Campgrounds Picnic areas Exterior pedestrian routes at facilities.

Accessible features at NH State Park and Historical sites Locations

The following locations provide added features to our patrons in order to make the most out of their experience at NH State Parks and Historical Sites. For more information on a service provided, please contact the location directly.

Facilities

ADA accessible viewing platform located across from 18^th street (North Beach)
Accessible Dishwashing stations (White Lake State Park, Moose Brook State Park, Jericho State Park and Umbagog Lake State Park.)
Cathedral Ledge Accessible trail and viewing area.
Accessible picnic tables & fire rings (grills) in campgrounds and picnic areas
Playgrounds with accessible play features
Adding family bathroom areas to all new and renovated toilet buildings.
Accessible camping cabins at Bear Brook (Bear Hill), Pawtuckaway State Park and Jericho Mountain State Park. Accessible yurt at Milan Hill State Park.

Beach wheelchairs

Hampton Beach - beach wheelchairs are available at the Hampton Beach first aid room in the Seashell building daily from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m, and at Hampton South Beach, inquire at the tollbooth or park store.
Beach access mats can be found at Hampton Beach State Park and Wallis Sands State Park.

The following parks also have beach wheelchairs available.

Ellacoya State Park - Inquire at toll booth or park store
Mt. Sunapee State Park - Inquire at toll booth or park store
Wellington State Park - Inquire at toll booth or park store
Pawtuckaway State Park- beach wheelchair is available 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Pawtuckaway Beach Lifeguard room. Inquire with lifeguards or beach store staff. Only available when lifeguards are on duty.
Kingston State Park- beach wheelchair is available 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. located at park office. Inquire at toll booth or park store and staff will bring down to the store/beach area.

Policy for powered driven mobilty devices (PDMD)

For general questions, suggestions and comments about accessibility in NH State Parks and Historic Sites please use the contact information below.
nhparks@dncr.nh.gov
603-271-3556

Other Links to Enjoy Outdoor Recreation in New Hampshire:

USFS White Mountain National Forest

NH Fish and Game Department