Ocqueoc Falls ’12 project a da Vinci Award finalist
by Peter Jakey–Managing Editor
Ocqueoc Falls Bicentennial Pathway has been labeled as having the most universally accessible waterfall in the country. The new handicap design, which debuted in 2012, is one of 15 global finalists for a 2013 da Vinci Award. The park, which is administered by the Department of Natural Resources, was closed during the 2011 summer season. The award recognizes technologies that help people overcome physical limitations.
“It was one of the goals, it is a swimming destination,” said Blake Gingrich, park supervisor at P.H. Hoeft State Park and Ocqueoc Falls. “Anytime we improve anything, or upgrade anything, we take it to a higher standard. And we want to make it not just accessible, but universally accessible so you can go down the ramp, get to the water, and transfer from a wheelchair to the water.”
Gingrich said credit belongs to DNR fire officer Marty Osantowski and forest resource planner Brenda Curtis.
Curtis was the project manager and will be attending the awards ceremony at the Ford Conference & Events Center in Dearborn. “She saw it all the way through to the end, until she retired,” said Gingrich. “Marty was on the ground planning and giving her information. He had a lot of input on what happened with the project.”
“Our people in Lansing received a letter,” said Gingrich. It states, “‘Congratulations it is with great pleasure that we congratulate Ocqueoc Falls as being a finalist in the environmental adaptation, daily living, work aids category for the 2013 da Vinci awards.’ ”
Although the Michigan Chapter of National Multiple Sclerosis Society, the presenters of the da Vinci Award, decide the final winner, the society empowers people to decide the winner of another prestigious recognition, the people’s choice Leo Award, open to all 15 da Vinci Award finalists.
Go to http://bit.ly/leoaward before April 7 to “like” the project that is deserving of the award. There is a three-minute video, which was shot June 29, 2012, when the park was re-dedicated.
Ocqueoc Falls, located between Onaway and Rogers City, showcases four scenic trails through hardwood forests.
The paved trail from the parking lot to the waterfall was widened to comfortably allow groups of trave
To make the bluff—the historical route to the river— accessible, transfer platforms were installed at the top and bottom of the bluff and strategically placed cut rock was installed in between to create three routes of various challenge levels. Additionally, a recycled, plastic decked ramp, compliant with ADA requirements, leads to a transfer station into the falls—a series of tiered flat rocks that allows someone to transfer from a wheelchair, down the rocks, to the water’s edge and into the water.