Some SoCal beaches take extra steps to be handicapped accessible

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Summer is here and the beach will soon be the place to go to escape the heat.

But beach access can be a challenge for those who struggle to walk on an uneven surface, or anyone confined to a wheelchair.

"It's near impossible without a lot of hands to get a wheelchair from the back of the beach up into the front of the beach where most of the people generally like to hang out," explains Jake Miller, an ocean lifeguard specialist with the LA County Fire Department.

But with a little planning, there is a way for everyone to enjoy a day at the beach. At select spots up and down the coast you'll find access mats that make walking on the beach possible.

"These mats are great, they allow people that may be handicapped with wheelchairs, even parents with strollers to access the waterfront," says Joe Bailey, a marine safety chief with the city of Seal Beach.

The mats are a plus, but beach wheelchairs are even more liberating. The large, wide wheels can roll across the sand without sinking. The Lions Club in Seal Beach recently donated a new beach wheelchair to replace an older one.

When Larry O. Young used one, it was an amazing experience.

"It's just, what little water that I've gotten is great," he said.

Walking across the sand in bare feet is hard enough. Using a traditional wheelchair is next to impossible. These wheelchairs make getting to and from the ocean not only possible, but enjoyable.

Miller agreed, "Basically, once you're in the wheelchair you need about one person to push you around, get you from the back of the beach to the front of the beach, even out into the water line and you can have a great time out here on the beach."

The beach wheelchairs are available for free at select beaches throughout Southern California during daylight hours.

At Dockweiler Youth Center they can be reserved, but at other locations they are available on a first-come first-served basis. You are asked to contact beaches directly to make arrangements to use the chairs.

After that? Miller says enjoy the sand, surf and sun.

"It's just an awesome, awesome way to enjoy the beach. Everybody loves coming down to the beach and having a great time down here, so to make it accessible to anybody is a great tool."