Richard;

There are two spots in my neighborhood of Seattle that are wheelchair
accessible that come to mind right away, the
Chittenden/Government/Ballard Locks and Shilshole Marina/Golden Gardens
Park. I didn't respond earlier because shorebirds are pretty rare at
both spots. Both are best for winter waterfowl and gulls, but other
birds are present during summer. At Shilshole/Golden Gardens the birding
may be better at low tide but the water will be more visible at high
tide from a wheelchair. Also, the sidewalk near the teen center at GG
can be buried in sand at times depending on weather and maintenance
schedules, that could be a problem Greenlake is wheelchair accessible
and is a great spot for waterfowl as well. The Greenlake alliance offers
guided walks Nov. thru April, maybe Martin can address wheelchair
accessibility issues for the guided walks. There are a few spots at
Greenlake and Golden Gardens where the water is visible from a car, but
not at the locks.

Discovery Park offers bird walks some of the year, I'm not sure about
wheelchair access, but one walk I went on offered a choice of foot or
van, I'm sure some of the trails are accessible but not all, it's pretty
hilly and there are lots of stairs cut in the hills. Other Seattle parks
may work too, but I can't say for sure. Since you're in New York I'd be
glad to do a little research if you need it.

You know, us Tweets could do a bit of a service by compiling a list of
accessible birding spots in Cascadia. From personal experience all it
takes is a bit of a slip at 4:30 AM to really appreciate the lack of
steep hills and stairs at birding locales.

Cliff Drake
cdrake at zipcon.net