In late 2016 I took a trip out to the San Francisco Bay area – a real home away from home. I spent two years living in the Bay and wanted to visit a few old friends. The highlight of the trip was getting to go out to Alcatraz Island, home of Alcatraz Prison, and now a United States National Park. Despite some buildings being almost a century old, Alcatraz is amazingly accessible to explore and it was one of my favorite travel adventure yet.
I used my freewheel for the entire trip. Giving my chair a third point of contact adds a lot of stability which made me much more self confident when dealing with the ferry to/from the island as well as getting around the prison grounds. I’d recommend either a free wheel or a three wheeled scooter for maximum safety, but you can definitely get by with a regular power chair or even a manual chair, especially if you go slow, wear a seat belt, and have some help.
The quickest way to get to Alcatraz is by catching the cruise ferry from Pier 33 near Fisherman’s Wharf. Alcatraz Cruises provides a great accessible experience. Ferries leave every half hour or so. Admission to Alcatraz is free, but the ferry costs about $15 roundtrip. The ferry loading waiting area has a nice cafe that sells food, drinks and souvenirs. The ferry itself sells food and drinks inside as well and they have ramp access and wide doorways. You can stay inside enjoying a coffee or sit outside like we did and catch the best views of San Francisco .
Once you disembark from the ferry there is a landing area where a US Park Ranger welcomes you. There’s a small gift shop and accessible restrooms.
After the introduction, you’re free to wander almost the entire island by yourself. The prison building itself is on top of a hill. There is a long, winding and relatively steep walking path all the way to the top. Along the way are located the additional buildings of the prison.
Instead of struggling up the path, most people take an electric tram to the top. The tram is free and completely accessible with a ramp providing access for at least two wheelchairs and companions. By taking the tram you can see the entire grounds and have plenty of energy for exploring the prison itself. Here’s a video of the tram ride taken using my GoPro:
Once you disembark at the top of the hill, there’s another gift shop and the main entrance to the prison. You can wander around yourself and see the various exhibits or there’s also an audio tour provided for free. Highly recommend you get the audio tour as its narrated by the real prisoners and guards. The prison itself is completely accessible, at least the areas open to the public. The doorways are wide and you can even get inside the cells.
Walking the prison grounds really makes you feel like you’ve traveled back in time. Nothing has changed from the last day it was open down to the last lunch menu still being on the wall of the cafeteria. As you take the audio tour they guide you to locations of bullet holes in the floor and tell you about the infamous battles between guards and prisoners.
The rangers encouraged us to take #cellfies inside
When you’re done exploring the prison, you can either take the tram back down the hill to the ferry loading area, or you can walk your way down the pathway and see all the other buildings up close. Going down a long ramp is obviously much easier than going up, so we chose to simply walk down the hill. While it is steep at times the entire path is paved and there are plenty of flat areas along the way to rest. But this is the area where having a freewheel really helped me feel stable.
Visiting Alcatraz Island is one of the cheapest and best ways to not only see a piece of American history, but also a great excuse to get out on the San Francisco Bay. One last tip – buy your ferry tickets online in advance to avoid having to wait in line or worry about a full boat. You can often find a 2-for-1 Groupon deal as well.
