Accessibility

A man in wheelchair enjoying the view of Crystal Creek Falls. Photo courtesy of Ross Perry.

To learn about accessible features at Whiskeytown, visit these specific webpages:

• Physical/Mobility
• Blind/Low Vision
• Deaf/Hearing Loss.

Whiskeytown National Recreation Area takes pride in being as accessible as possible to as many different people as possible. If you need assistance or have questions about your visit to the park, please email [e-mail].

 

Photo of Access Pass.

Access Pass

U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are permanently disabled or blind are eligible for the Interagency Access Pass. This free, lifetime admission pass is valid at National Park Service, Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Reclamation sites. It provides the pass owner and accompanying passengers in a private vehicle free admission to Yosemite National Park. The Access Pass can be obtained at the Whiskeytown Visitor Center. Identification such as a Drivers License and proof of disability required.

 

Duration:

6 minutes, 29 seconds

We'd like to share this American Sign Language video about Whiskeytown's invasive plants. Learn more about invasive plant management with Karen, a Deaf biological science technician, who talks about some of the species that the Invasive Plant Crew treats and her experience working as a member of our crew.

 

YouTube logo.

YouTube Videos with Captioning

Park interpretive staff have spent dozens of hours creating informational videos about the national recreation area and adding captions to these videos so that visitors with hearing impairment can read them. Check out our videos on Whiskeytown's YouTube channel.

 

Facebook and Instagram logos.

Image Descriptions on Social Media

Whiskeytown's interpretive park rangers provide a short written description of each image posted on Facebook and Instagram in order to enable visitors that are blind to use their screen reader software to then understand what the image depicts. We also provide alternative text for photos on this website so that screen readers can be used successfully.

 

A Yosemite National Park employee conducting American sign language.

Requesting a Sign Language Interpretation

Whiskeytown contracts with outside ASL interpreters to provide sign language interpretation for visitors to the park. If you plan on attending a ranger-led program during your visit and would like an ASL interpreter, advance notice (at least two weeks) is required. We will make every effort to provide an ASL interpreter, however, last minute requests may be difficult to accommodate due to distance and availability.

 

• Where's the Whiskey, Where's the Town Wayside Audio

  
  

  An audio version of the Where's the Whiskey wayside.

  Date created:

  12/21/2021

  Audio Transcript

  Where’s the Whiskey? Where’s the Town? California Gold Rush towns sometimes had colorful names. Such was the case with Whiskeytown, a small community born in the 1850s that succumbed to progress with the creation of Whiskeytown Lake over 100 years later. Standing from your current vantage point between the 1850s and 1950s, you would have seen this community about two miles distant. While no one really knows the origin of the Whiskeytown name, local folklore tells of an 1850s miner by the name of Billie Peterson who had a mishap. Hauling supplies to a mine, a pack on his mule’s back broke loose and Peterson’s supply of whiskey tumbled down a hill into the creek. From this christening came the name Whiskey Creek and Whiskey Town. Whiskeytown was a boomtown in the 1850s, but after most of the gold had been mined, the town grew quieter. Those that remained ranched, farmed, or served the few travelers passing through. Some continued to try their luck at mining. Before the lake was created in the early 1960s, the federal government purchased the town’s properties. Residents were given fair market value, but they were forced to relocate. The town’s historic cemetery was moved to its present location below the Clair A. Hill Whiskeytown Dam, while a couple other buildings were moved elsewhere. Today, although the town of Whiskeytown is no more, the colorful name remains.