Watch the drain holes in AK- on way to Safari

[Dawnlight]

After 2 long and tiring days at MK and Epcot, my dear mother- who has two full hip implants, arthritis, and knee and back problems- could walk not further and was in pain.

We rented a wheelchair for the remainder of our visit, starting with our day in AK.

Our first stop was the Safari after rope drop. One of my teen boys was pushing her when he hit a drainage grate going up an incline and launched his grandma out of the chair onto the hard concrete. The drainage grate was recessed, more like a pot hole, and not even with the path, nor was it very visible, especially to the person pushing the chair. Thankfully, she was not injured more than some bruising on her knee.

There were several instances throughout our remaining visit where there were separations in the sidewalks, uneven paths, doorway thresholds, etc that we needed to be very mindful of when pushing the wheelchair.

Please be on the lookout to avoid launching grandma or anyone else.

 

[bidnow5]

Care should always be taken wheelchairs have skinny small front tires all the parks have issues mostly AK and the tracks in MK

 

[Goofy14sure]

WDW (and the rest of the world) is a different place with mobility problems. I am glad you got the chair tho, and had some available pushers! On your next trip get that chair first thing, don't wait for the pain, well it's just too painful! Or try a Scooter, it could give her more independence, but still watch those grates (and trolley tracks)

 

[Dawnlight]

I had tried for months before our trip to get her to agree to a scooter rental, but she was sure it wouldn't be an issue. She'd been feeling much better since back surgery last year, but hadn't grasped the amount of standing and walking involved (despite all my efforts to make her realize).

I'm so thankful for my teen boys who did an amazing job pushing her; it was hard work, but they did it without any complaint!

 

[Goofy14sure]

For a lot of folks scooter or wheelchair use is a tough decision to make, but it's one you usually have to make yourself , I hope she enjoyed the rest of the trip as painfree as possible. Disney is so big requires so much walking and sometimes it's hard to come to terms with our limitations

 

[Bete]

We have a wheelchair that has a safety belt attached. If you rent one you can buy a gait belt that will fit around the chair's back and that can serve as a safety belt. You can't expect the person in the wheelchair to hold on good enough.

AK is the hardest park to push a wheelchair; there are too many uneven surfaces.

As a pusher, you need to be very careful and find the paths that are the best through the parks. Going slow is another help. Sometimes, it's helpful if there is a lead looking out for any problems.

I agree with other posters that you need to do this from day one. I think your mom knows now how tough it is to walk the parks day in day day out.

Glad she wasn't badly hurt.