Parks & Beaches
Bibra Lake Reserve
Progress Drive
Bibra Lake
The reserve is situated on the west side of the lake and comprises children playgrounds, picnic tables & chairs and lots of shady spots. The two carparks each have two Acrod parking bays and there is wheelchair friendly footpaths throughout the reserve, and around the lake. The footpath next to the lake edge should be used with some caution as it slobs in places and there is no safety railing.
The reserve and the outlook over the lake are very picturesque, and there is a vast array of birdlife right at the lake edge, including the black swan. A jetty, which is wheelchair accessible, allows further viewing of the site.
The public toilets have a dedicated unisex disabled toilet.
Kings Park and Botanic Garden
Bordered by Thomas Street
and Kings Park Road
West Perth
Kings Park and Botanic Garden is 400 hectares in area and is located overlooking the Swan River, approximately 1.5 km from the Central Business District of Perth. It is a popular place for picnics, pleasant walks, cultural and ceremonial events. The State War Memorial was erected in 1929.
Nearly two thirds of the Park is natural bush containing 319 species of native plants and around 80 bird species. The balance of the Park is made up of cultivated gardens and open recreational areas.
The main entrance off Kings Pk Rd, Fraser Ave, takes you to the main carpark where there is ample Acrod parking. The Acrod parking is on a sideways slope so just be careful not to do what this goose did and be watching the birds instead of driving down the vehicle ramp allowing for the slant. Adjacent is the café and restaurant, and a unisex disabled toilet. From here you can walk to the War Memorial and to the Kaarta Lookout where there are sweeping views of the city and the river. Wheelchair access is good with a friendly gradient all the way. If you go the opposite direction you will go to the botanical garden and the federation walkway. Be warned that while wheelchair access is good there is a deceiving gradual downhill gradient on the way and some steep gradients further on past the walkway. My electric wheelchair handled with ease, but it would require a keen and fit pusher of a manual wheelchair. There is another unisex disabled toilet on the way to the walkway.
The Federation Walkway extends through the Botanic Garden along a combination of paths and an elevated 52 m glass and steel arched bridge suspended amongst a canopy of tall eucalypts. Wheelchair access is good. With panoramic views of the river and an up close view of the treetops it is most enjoyable. If you turn right after the bridge the path meanders to a pond and gazebo, which is the base of a babbling brook. Following the entwining path and brook uphill you find at the top the Pioneer Women’s Memorial fountain where the water gushes metres into the air. It is a very beautiful and worthwhile walk in an electric wheelchair, but be prepared for the effort if in a manual.
Another area in the park is the Synergy Parkland, which is located on May Avenue on the other side of the park. The area comprises of a small lake surrounded by picnic areas with gas barbecues, children’s playgrounds and overlooked by the Zamia café. Wheelchair friendly pathways wind amongst the areas and there is four Acrod parking bays at the rear of the café. Also at the rear of the café is a unisex disabled toilet, which has rails, friendly fittings and enough room. The café is best entered from the veranda at the other end of the café to the loo where there is more room for wheelchairs, but if the weather dictates moving into the cramped indoors the staff are quickly willing to fit you in, which they did for me. A great location to enjoy a cappuccino while watching nature and families at play.
Lake Monger Reserve
Lake Monger Drive
Wembley
Lake Monger Reserve is located 5 km north of Perth’s central business district and has long been a popular tourist and recreational venue. The reserve is spacious and level – ideal for wheelchairs. There is several carparks off Lake Monger Drive and while there was no Acrod parking marked there appears to be adequate room. There is also a dedicated unisex disabled toilet in the public facilities here. At the other end of the lake, off Harbourne Street –Dodd Street, is another carpark and toilet block. However, I would recommend using Lake Monger Drive as the carpark off Harbourne is not as good and the facilities don’t have a unisex disabled toilet – they were actually locked the day I visited.
The lake’s shoreline incorporates a recreational pedestrian path, measuring 3.5 km in length. The path is all wheelchair accessible, including the wetland conservation diversion on the freeway side, where there are a couple of viewing jetties. There are also three playgrounds in the parkland around the Lake; two are off Lake Monger Drive on the southern side of the Lake – one colossal shaded one , the third at the north end off Dodd Road and this playground also has gas BBQ's.
The Reserve covers an area of 113 hectares, (parkland 43ha, lake 70ha). The Lake is an important feeding and breeding habitat for water birds, migratory birds, tortoises and is a drought refuge when other wetland areas dry up in the summer months. There is an abundance of birds’ right on the shoreline for easy viewing. Well worth a visit.
Mettams Pool
West Coast Highway
Trigg
This small beach is located on the beautiful sunset coast. It is also located on a very popular cycle track that connects Sorrento Beach and Trigg Island, which is also wheelchair friendly and offers panoramic views.
It is an ideal area for dry and wet reef exploration, while the sheltered rock pool is ideal for families and elderly swimmers. This sheltered pool also has a dedicated wheelchair path down to the waters edge where there are a couple of tables and benches under the shade of a large gazebo. Although swimming was not an option I found it refreshing to be down so close to the sea and sand.
To get to the toilets you have to go back to the road and up the footpath 100 metres, and down a sloped path to the changerooms, which have a toilet cubicle in each respective block. Wheelchair access is good, but it is a standard toilet. Parking is available on the highway in eight Acrod bays. However because the parking is so tight with few ramps off the busy highway I would suggest that is safer to park in the Bennian beach carpark just 100 metres south of Mettams.
Queens Gardens
Corner Hay and Plain Streets
East Perth
Tucked away to the east of the city is this serene English-style park, complete with a replica of the famous Peter Pan statue which graces London's Kensington Gardens. This leafy oasis feature tranquil water gardens and shady seats to enjoy the bird life or admire the gardens.
Wheelchair access around the gardens is good and parking is available. The toilets in the north east corner have a disabled sign and ramp, but I was unable to enter the designated cubicle with my wheelchair as it was too small. Despite this I highly recommend these lovely gardens.
Walyunga National Park
Great Northern Highway
Bullsbrook
The first picnic site on the right upon entering is wheelchair friendly only. There is an entry fee. Two Acrod parking bays. The site itself is lovely, surrounded by native bush and overlooking the river, and there is an abundance of native birds and wildflowers. There are gas barbecues, tables and adequate shade trees. Access beyond the picnic site by wheelchair is impossible.
The toilet is 100m from the picnic site at the other end of the bitumen carpark. Accessible by wheelchair, but it is on a slope. Dedicated unisex disabled toilet roomy enough with one wall mounted grab-rail. Toilet and fittings standard. Very clean for a public loo.
Watermans Beach
West Coast Highway
Waterman
Just a couple of kilometers north of Mettams Pool. The beach is not accessible and there are no disabled toilets, but on the south end of the beach is an accessible park. Somewhat hidden from the highway this little park is quite secluded and is bordered by the rugged limestone and the lapping surf.
The best place to park is in the carpark before the beach, traveling north turn left before the pine trees. There is an Acrod parking bay at the end and a footpath to the park. The park consists of a playground, benches and a small grass area where dogs are allowed
Go a couple of hundred metres further along and there is a lookout over the beach with benches, and over the road a café. Get someone to pop over for cappuccino to go and sit and watch the sun set over the breaking waves.