Disabled Hikers

06/01/2026

Happy Pride! In celebration of Gay Pride this month and Disability Pride next month, we are launching a special fun-raiser.

Donashuns are down this year, and we need to raise $2,000 to close a fun-raising gap. As a disabled and q***r -led nonprofit, we need your support. We don't want to just continue surviving, we want to thrive!

Will you help us thrive with pride?

Info in the usual place! ID below.

05/27/2026

Disabled Hikers is excited to partner with on the new, free Forest and Washington Park Express Shuttle! Starting June 12, you can take a shuttle from North, East, and Northeast Portland directly to Forest Park on Fridays and Saturdays.

We are hosting two community gatherings at Lower Macleay Park! Join us for a casual hangout and stroll or roll along the creek. Wheelchair accessible, masks required, and timed so you can easily arrive on the shuttle (or take paratransit, Trimet, or drive).

Details at the usual place!

ID: text on background photo reads Disabled Hikers community gathering, Lower Macleay Park Portland, June 27 July 18. Logo for the Forest and Washington Park shuttle in the upper eight. Disabled Hikers logo at the bottom. Photo of a paved trail along a creek.

05/24/2026

Syren's story:
I have hEDS (and all of the commonly associated conditions). I experienced my first full joint dislocation at the age of 2 and then yearly (or more) all the way through my 20s. Much of my childhood was spent at the Shriners Hospital, and I was diagnosed around the age of 8 or 10.

Thankfully, as I've aged and learned how to care for my body, I experience fewer full dislocations. But EDS is so much more than hypermobile joints, and I still have regular subluxations, as well as all of the skin, digestion, sensitivity, and chronic pain and fatigue issues. My muscles are constantly working overtime to hold me together, and decades of injuries have taken their toll. I am in pain every day for a variety of reasons.

Hiking has not cured my EDS. While it has helped me build some muscle, it has also contributed to injuries. I know that I risk an injury on every hike, so I prepare as much as I can. Sometimes, it means prioritizing my mental health over my physical. When I feel consumed by my pain or the ableism of the world, being outdoors gives me a place to lean into and feel like I belong.

Because I do - and so do you. Our disabled bodyminds are natural. We are nature.

ID: Syren, a white nonbinart person, sits on a log bench in the forest. Syren’s dog, a small, long-haired terrier, sits next to them. The trailnis covered in golden larch tree needles.

05/20/2026

Forever creating bad graphics so you know its not fake 😅

We believe there is no ethical use of generative AI. Generative AI are software like ChatGPT and generative tools within other platforms, like in Adobe and Canva where you describe something and the software creates it.

GenAI were trained on stolen intellectual property such as ebooks, blogs, and published art - including Syren's work.

AI data centers are causing extreme environmental harm, including draining ground water supplies and using massive amounts of energy, straining the systems that keep humans and more than humans alive. Communities are already struggling because of it, and utility prices are skyrocketing in part to pay for the increased usage and infrastructure.

GenAI is entirely unregulated. Some governments and agencies are rushing to catch up and put regulations in place, but its often too little too late. And it is becoming more difficult to tell the difference between what's real and what's AI.

To be clear GenAI is not the same as processing tools. Things like voice to text and grammar correction tools existed long before and were often first created for accessibility.

GenAI is increasingly forced on us, but we encourage everyone to be mindful of its use. Everytime you are tempted by it, just imagine yourself gathering a bucket of water from the river and pouring it down the drain then running every major appliance in your house for an extra hour, and ask yourself if it is worth that.

ID: text reads Generative AI with a red circle and slash over it. Background photo of a river with low water flow surrounded by trees.

05/15/2026

Join Us this Summer! -

"When I'm outdoors, I experience disability in the landscape. I can perceive a diversity of ways for bodies to exist in nature. And I know that disability is entirely natural." Syren Nagakyrie, founder

05/14/2026

People often believe that by adding accessible features, we can "solve the problem" of accessibility and Disabled people. But they forget that ableism is a much larger, social issue that affects us even more everyday. Here's one story from a community member about that.

"I went to the Oregon Coast to enjoy a day off. I was excited to check out the accessible beach mats. But of course, the ableds tried to ruin it.

I was riding my mobility scooter down a beach mat with my service dog on my lap. The mats are bumpy and rough, but we were both enjoying the break.

Well, down the mat comes a group of three adults with four big unleashed dogs. They are taking up the entire mat even though there's plenty of room on the sand and these things are specifically for mobility use.

As I come down they barely move to one side, still taking up over half of the mat and forcing me to the very edge. They make some off hand comment that I don't pay attention to, because I'm too busy watching their dogs who are very focused on me and my dog.

These dogs are as tall as I am sitting in the scooter, and perfectly level to us. I ask them to make room and try to scooter past, but they all move closer, looking at me in my scooter like an oddity. Then the dogs come right in and stick their faces into mine and my dogs, invading our space and nearly forcing me off the mat. I yell very loudly "no!"

At that point the men half heartedly try to distract their dogs and the woman yells at me "good grief! Don't yell at my dogs! What are you even doing here?" I just ignored her and rode quickly down to the end of the mat (which wasn't far).

It was so disappointing to have the one place that was supposed to be accessible and for people like me, taken up by people who did not seem like they needed it. And to have them refuse to give me space and then yell at me for asking for it. It needs to be clearer that these things are for mobility use, though I don't know if people would actually pay attention."

ID: photo of a blue mat running across the sand towards the ocean. Text reads ableism and Microaggressions Outdoors. Why accessibility isn't enough.

05/12/2026

We want to say thank you to two new funding partners!

Disabled Hikers was awarded funding from the East Bay Regional Parks District Community Engagement Grant Pilot Program. This new grant program is supporting community based organizations to do what we already do best - engage with our own communities. DH will host 3 group events, a community engagement session, and create a new trail guide in the East Bay (California).

We are also awarded funding from Washington State through the Jefferson County Accessible Communities Advisory Committee. This funding will support the creation of new guides to at least 5 parks in Jefferson County and provide introductory training on how to do trail assessments for up to 5 disabled community members.

We have a busy 12 months ahead, with even more to come! We remain committed to this work and creating more space for disability communities in the outdoors.

05/09/2026

The Disabled Hikers Spoon Rating System is one of the features of our unique framework for trail assessments and guides. It is designed to be a more specific, objective starting point as you search for trail information. It is not a difficulty rating or even an accessibility rating, but does combine factors of both to help you decide if a trail might be appropriate for you.

The Spoon Rating should always be read in combination with the full trail guide, which provides details on wheelchair accessibility, elevation, amenities, sensory elements, and so much more.

The Spoon Rating is based in an understanding of Spoon Theory as created by Christine Miserandino. The Rating is a 1-5 scale and is not intended to tell you exactly how many spoons a hike will take. It is a more specific, objective, culturally relevant alternative to the meaningless difficulty levels out there such as "easy, moderate, difficult."

The Spoon Rating System was created by our founder, Syren Nagakyrie, and is used in all of our trail guides and published guidebooks. It is not intended for use by the public, but we are working on a training program to teach others how to do assessments and write guides. You can support that work if you find this meaningful.

Image Descriptions to follow below.

05/04/2026

You are not "letting" your disability stop you.
There are so many toxic narratives about overcoming disability and not letting disability stop you, especially in adaptive sports and recreation. We frequently talk to people who feel guilty and ashamed because they aren't able to do the things they want. This is the harm of inspirational narratives about disability.

These narratives also gloss over the structural and systemic harm of ableism, which DOES prevent disabled people from living the lives we want. And our civil rights and protections continue to be challenged.

We have to hold the multiple truths of disability. Disability does prevent people from doing some things, no matter how hard we try. That is valid. Ableism also prevents us from doing things, and that should be unacceptable. Its also true that we all need a little motivation sometimes, but reminders that you are capable should never punch down at people who can't do the same things.

ID: you are not letting your disability stop you. Background photo of the earth from space.

04/27/2026

"When I'm outdoors, I experience disability in the landscape. I can perceive a diversity of ways for bodies to exist in nature. And I know that disability is entirely natural." Syren Nagakyrie, founder

Being outdoors and noticing all of the ways that bodies and beings exist, move, and sense in their environments, and how unique of a role each has to play in the ecosystem has been such a powerful lesson. Not only around accepting and embracing disability but also a never ending lesson on connection, relationship, and interdependence.

In that sense of connection and interdependence, we invite you to join our Disability is Natural Challenge. Your support is so needed in these times. If you've learned from or appreciated our work, please consider making a gift.

ID: graphic with the above quote on the left. On the right, Syren, a white nonbinary person wearing a Disanled Hikers shirt, leans against a tree and looks up.