- [Reporter] It's swampy out here under the power lines on the west side of Yarmouth and there are ticks, but this work crew is undeterred.

(drill whirring) Dan Ostrye is the crew's organizer.

- I used to live just a quarter of a mile from here and my son used to try and come out here and mountain bike and always come home either shoeless or covered in mud or both.

And so we said, we wanna find a way so that future generations can enjoy this, and one of the ways was to develop it into a multi-use trail.

- [Reporter] For more than a decade, volunteers have been working to complete the 11-mile West Side Trail.

The final mile, this section, will be accessible to those with disabilities.

It includes several long boardwalks.

- The boards are my favorite part, carrying them.

- [Reporter] Owen Seehagen and his sister Olivia are first-time volunteers here with their grandfather.

- We're building a bridge for the people that have a wheelchair or need help walking.

- Some of these will have a dimple on the side that will cause the space to be much wider than it should be.

- [Reporter] Details matter.

There can be no wide gaps between the boards, and the team has chosen cedar that is rough-sawn because it is less slippery than pressure-treated lumber.

On the graveled sections of the path, the grades and turns are gentle.

The trail has been carefully designed for inclusion.

Ostrye believes it reflects a generational shift in attitudes.

- What we are doing here, if you tried to do this say 20 years ago, everyone would've said, "Huh?"

And I think that's part of the reason why you're seeing these kinds of trails being developed now.

That ethos wasn't there.

- The new section of the West Side Trail is one of a handful of new trail projects around the state designed to be universally accessible.

They're part of a growing national movement known as Outdoors for All, but one of the biggest proponents of that movement here in Maine isn't waiting for special new trails to be built.

He's out there now.

Meet Enock Glidden.

Born with spine bifida, Glidden goes everywhere in a wheelchair.

For a year now, he's been traveling all over Maine testing trails in partnership with the folks at Maine Trail Finder.

- So I go on there three times a week and I'll pick an easy trail and then I just go try it and see what happens - [Jennifer] Today, it's the Knight's Pond Preserve in Cumberland.

- When I'm doing these trails, I'm taking note in my head of different obstacles.

Like there's a hill behind us or rocks coming up the hill or grooves in the road or roots.

That's a big thing.

There's lots of roots usually, 'cause of trees.

And so I take note of all those things in my mind and I take pictures and I take video to show people what I'm seeing so that before they even leave the house, they know what they're gonna encounter.

- [Jennifer] When he gets home, he posts his pictures and writes a blog.

He liked this trail, calling it a beautiful place to spend an afternoon and rated most of it accessible or quote, "wheelie easy."

Glidden spends a lot of time consulting with land trusts and other groups in Maine.

His message, it might not take much to make your trails significantly more accessible.

- If people would just look at the trails they already have, the easy ones, and look at it from a perspective of "If I was in a chair right now, would any of this stop me from continuing?"

And if they do find something that would stop them, how can we fix it?

And then just fix that and fix the next thing and the next thing, and then pretty soon you have an accessible trail.

And I want people to see that there is possibilities for accessibility in the outdoors and it doesn't necessarily have to cost thousands of dollars.

You could fix the one bog bridge and change it to a boardwalk this year and then next year fix another one, and then eventually the trail will be accessible and people can use it, everyone can use it.

- The origin story of the organization's amazing.

- [Jennifer] Zach Stegeman of the Adaptive Outdoor Education Center says Outdoors for All means all ages and all abilities.

- I think we are approaching a tipping point, approaching a movement.

- [Jennifer] He sees outdoor groups working not only to improve trails, but also the nature of their organizations, making them more welcoming and accessible.

How far do we have to go?

- As far as the trail goes.

We've got a long ways to go.

It doesn't have to be every trail, but it sure would be great if we looked at just about every venue with trails having one that is accessible, where someone with a physical challenge navigating some uneven terrain, or perhaps a traumatic brain injury and some balance issues, could be visually impaired, whatever the challenge is, that they can still get outside, access that beautiful space.

It doesn't have to be the summit.

It can just be somewhere along the way, but we got a ways to go, for sure.

- [Jennifer] Meantime, the volunteers in West Yarmouth will keep showing up.

- I just find this rewarding.

The simple little work we're doing today, one board after another, two screws here, two screws there.

It's not mind full work, but it's incredibly good work, and it will result in a very good product used by hundreds and hundreds of people for decades.

So what's not to like?

- [Jennifer] And Enock Glidden will keep trying new trails.

- I was doing a trail near where I live in Bethel at the Valentine Farm, and a lady walked up to me and said, "Aren't you Enock Glidden?"

and I said "Yes."

And she said, "I love your blogs.

You've pointed out so many places that me and my mother can go together."

And so that's really why I do that.

(upbeat music)