Accessibility

Accessibility at Fort Pulaski

Select the options below for information on accessibility. 

Mobility

Wheelchairs

• Wheelchair loans are available on a first-come, first-serve basis and are free of charge. Ask at the Visitor Center desk for more information.

Parking Lot

• There are four designated accessible parking spaces near the visitor center entrance.
• There is a pull off to the right of the road in front of the Visitor Center coming from the park entrance. This space can be used for offloading and loading. Vehicles will need to be moved to the parking lot afterwards.

Visitor Center

• Both entrances to the Visitor Center are raised, reachable by either 5 stairs with handrails or a ramp.
• Automatic door openers are installed on main doors to the Visitor Center. The double-doors completely open outwards.
• Exhibit areas are accessible, but tight turns may be necessary to maneuver.

Theater

• Both theater doorways are 35” inches wide. A 90-degree turn may be necessary to maneuver into the theater.
• Each side of the theater have places to park a wheelchair.
• Seating are wooden benches.

Bathrooms

• Bathrooms are located outside of the Visitor Center at ground level.
• Three 90-degree turns may be necessary to enter the bathrooms. One to maneuver to the bathroom door, once inside the doorway, and then into the main space of the bathroom. Hallways are on average 45” across.
• Bathroom doorway is 33” wide with door open. Door opens inward.
• Sink counter is 34” high and open underneath. The faucet is approximately 15-17” from the front edge of the counter.
• Accessible stall requires a 90 degree turn to enter. Door opens outward. The doorway is 36” wide. The stall is 35” deep and 62” across. There is 28” clearance in front of the toilet and 38” clearance to the right side. Handrails are present.

Grounds

• A paved walkway connects the Visitor Center to the bathroom, fort and parking lot.
• The North Pier Loop is predominately paved, However, once it reaches the historic North Pier, the pavement ends. The ground in this area is uneven with a mixture of grass and sand.
• Dike Trail and Lighthouse Trail surfaces are a mixture of grass and crushed shell, flat but may be uneven.
• Grassy areas, including grass trails, may contain holes from armadillo activity.

Fort

• The fort is accessible via a paved walkway from the parking lot and visitor center. The path requires passing over two wooden bridges with no handrails.
• There is an incline at the entrance of the fort. The pavement is stone with grooves. The stone can be slick when wet.
• A brick walkway surrounds all sides on the interior of the fort. Bricks can be uneven in places. There is a slight downward angle away from the building to the parade ground.
• The parade ground is a grass surface that is very uneven. There will be multiple large holes from armadillo activity.
• Casemates are accessible by a 6-inch step or by brick or wooden ramps. No handrails are present.
• Interior of the casemates have brick and wooden floors. Grooves are cut into wooden and brick floors within casemates. Wooden floors may have 2” wide, 6” holes under the interior arches. Other divots may exist in the wooden floors.
• The prison area of the casemates has a wide, uneven groove in the brick. Lighting can be low.
• Most exhibit rooms have brick ramps for entrance. The entrance door is 36” wide. The entrance leads to a vestibule with low walls. The vestibule is 60”x60,” with the open door inside of that space. An exhibit sign may also be in that space.
• In several exhibit rooms, you may continue into the exhibit space. The break in the vestibule wall is 38”. A 90-degree turn is necessary to reach this from the entrance of the room. Another sharp turn may be necessary to go through the exhibit areas. Interior doors in these rooms are 32” wide.
• The terreplein is only accessible by stairs from the ground level. 29 steps are required. They are 8” in height. There are no handrails. There is a brick walkway that goes around the parade ground on the terreplein. There are no rails to prevent falls from the terreplein.
• Park store is accessible by a brick ramp.
• There are no restrooms in the fort.

Picnic Area

• There are two designated handicapped parking spaces in a gravel lot.
• The ground of the picnic area is uneven. There are no picnic benches reachable by a paved walkway.
• There are no restrooms.

 

Hearing

• The park film is closed captioned.

Visual

• There are no audio descriptions for the park film.
• A braille brochure is available upon request.

Service Animals

Service animals are permitted anywhere in the park, including the fort and trails. A service animal is defined as “any dog that is individually trained to do work or perform tasks for the benefit of an individual with a disability, including a physical, sensory, psychiatric, intellectual, or other mental disability”. Dogs are the only animals that can be used as a service animal except for miniature horses.

For more information on Service Animals and Emotional Support Animals, please visit the National Park Service pages about accessibility in National Parks.