In September of 1937, as the larches turned golden, President Franklin D. Roosevelt addressed the nation from the two-medicine chalet in Glacier National Park, saying in part, today, for the first time in my life, I have seen Glacier Park.

Perhaps I can best express to you my thrill and delight by saying that I wish every American,

young and old, could have been with me today.

The great mountains, the glaciers, the lakes, and the trees make me long to stay here for the rest of the summer.

I hope that each and every one of you who can possibly find the means and opportunity will we'll visit our national parks.

In the nearly 90 years since that address, millions of Americans have taken Roosevelt's advice,

finding landscapes that capture the imagination and test physical fitness.

National parks have become synonymous with outdoor adventure sports, climbing, rafting,

backpacking miles from cell service, or even trails. These activities offer a chance for a challenge, a way to connect with nature, and an escape from busy everyday life.

During his presidency, FDR visited a lot of parks.

There are pictures of him watching Old Faithful and Yellowstone touring Yosemite

Yosemite and arriving to formally dedicate Shenandoah. In the pictures of these visits, you see a man

who found meaning in our parks and who believed they are worth protecting. You might also notice

that in all of those photos, he's riding in a car. After contracting polio at age 39, FDR lost the use of his legs.

As an adult, he used mobility aids to navigate the world.

Wheelchairs, leg braces, custom ramps to enter and exit his vehicle, and horseback riding.

He remains one of the most prominent figures in world history with a disability,

but he is far from alone. According to CDC data published in 2024, one in every four

American adults has some form of disability. Physical conditions that make it difficult to walk or climb

stairs, vision loss, hearing loss, or cognitive disabilities,

people for whom daily life can feel like a challenge to overcome. People whose experience in

national parks, like Roosevelt's, are often limited to what you can see from a road. For example,

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