Adaptive Fishing Equipment Extends Outdoor Experiences to All at Camp Bullwheel

George rolls his wheelchair onto the catamaran with ease, settles into position, and grips his specially adapted fishing rod. As a C5 quadriplegic with limited upper extremity mobility, moments like these weren't supposed to be possible. But here on Montana's Madison River, with innovative equipment created by Peter Pauwels, George isn't just fishing – he's thriving independently on the water.

"If you've ever been around a C5 quad, it would be hard to believe that he does what he does," Peter says, watching George and his fishing partner Logan disappear around the river bend for another day of world-class fly fishing.

This scene repeats itself regularly at Camp Bullwheel, where Peter's five decades of adaptive fishing innovation have made it possible for people of all abilities to get out on the water.

A Vision Born from Friendship

Peter Pauwels' journey into adaptive fishing equipment began in the 1970s during his time at Colorado State University, where he served as the RA for relations with students who have disabilities. There, he formed a friendship with his roommate, a C5/C6 quadriplegic who shared his passion for fishing.

"We loved to fish together," Peter recalls. "And we always wanted to make it efficient for him to fish, but a C5/C6 has limited upper mobility. We took that as a challenge to figure it out."

This personal connection became the driving force behind Peter's decades-long mission to create equipment that would level the playing field on the water. Through his girlfriend, a physical therapist at Craig Rehabilitation Hospital in Denver, Peter began volunteering at the facility, which specializes in spinal cord and brain injury rehabilitation.

"They have a very extensive therapeutic recreation department, probably the largest in the nation," Peter explains. "They have 15 recreation therapists and a rehab engineering shop – a machine shop where you can make almost anything you dream up."

For 30 years, Peter refined his craft at Craig's rehab engineering shop, developing innovative solutions for every type of disability he encountered.

Engineering Independence: Adaptive Fishing Equipment That Changes Everything

Peter's ideas ranged from simple modifications to complete reimaginings of how fishing equipment can work.

"Some things are very basic," Peter notes. "Take a little kid using a Zebco reel. If they don't have grip, you can add a brace to hold on to the rod. If they have trouble pressing the button, you put a little plastic extension, give them a little more leverage."

But Peter's proudest creation is the "sip and puff" fishing rod that allows quadriplegic fishermen to cast and reel using breath control. "By sipping and puffing on a tube, you can activate a motor that pulls the rod back against a spring and releases it,” he explains.

Understanding that adaptive equipment can be prohibitively expensive for people with disabilities who often have limited earning capacity, Peter has always sought funding to make equipment freely available to those who need it.

Accessible Catamarans for Wheelchair Fishing

Perhaps Peter's most significant innovation came in solving the challenge of accessible float fishing. Traditional rafts proved problematic for wheelchairs. "We tried putting a platform on top of the raft, but when you put a wheelchair up on top of that platform, the center of gravity is way too high, so that didn't work," Peter recalls.

The solution came with the development of catamarans with larger tubes for better water displacement. "That opened up the possibility of getting power wheelchairs on a boat, which happened in 2007. That's when we made the first accessible catamaran."

Building Camp Bullwheel

The transition from Colorado to Montana began through an unexpected connection. A recreational therapist at Craig Hospital connected Peter with Chris Clasby, a Montanan who received one of Peter's old sip and puff rods. Recognizing the transformative potential of adaptive fishing equipment, Chris secured a $450,000 grant and called Peter with an ambitious request: "Can you make me two of everything you build?"

Chris and Peter became two of five founders of Camp Bullwheel, leveraging a property purchased by Frank Bell to extend their successful adaptive fly fishing program to Montana.

Camp Bullwheel began hosting guests in the spring 2018 and later partnered with Ability Montana. "All of us that started Camp Bullwheel are septuagenarians," Peter explains. "We need young people to take this forward. And since Ability is such a young and dynamic organization, they really appealed to us."

On January 1st, Frank Bell, the original owner of the Camp Bullwheel property, transferred ownership to Ability Montana, ensuring the program's continuation with fresh leadership and expanded resources.

The Camp Bullwheel model offers complete accessibility, featuring a wheelchair-accessible cabin with a roll-in shower, allowing individuals with severe mobility impairments to manage daily activities in a remote setting. The facility accommodates various family sizes and camping preferences, all within minutes of the river.

The program's wheelchair fishing capabilities have made the Madison River accessible to people who thought they'd never fish again. When someone with a spinal cord injury sees another person catching fish independently, it changes their perception of what's possible.

What’s Next at Camp Bullwheel

Peter and the Ability team of David Poole, Patrick Quinn, and Todd Hoar are now working to build a rehab engineering shop at Camp Bullwheel. With the bones of a shop ready, they’re raising money to purchase all the tools they’ll need to experiment with new prototypes.

"We're just one little program in Montana, and programs like this should be everywhere," Peter emphasizes.

Peter sees endless possibilities for adaptive fishing equipment development. "Fishing is endless — there are so many different habitats to explore. We're on the rivers, but other people like to fish lakes and ponds, small streams, big rivers, ocean, surf – it just goes on and on. And it all needs accessible and adaptive equipment to make it work for people with disabilities."

Experience Camp Bullwheel Yourself

Peter's work has made the Madison River more accessible than ever before, but he believes in the power of firsthand experience. "When you’re here and you see it in the faces of the people firsthand, that makes a huge difference."

Ready to discover how accessible world-class fishing can be? Don't let another season pass by. Reach out to David Pool, Ability’s Recreation Program Manager, at dpoole@abilitymt.org to plan your visit to Camp Bullwheel.