By Mike Pyer from the East Herts & West Essex Branch of the MS Society

I have been a member of the East Herts & West Essex MS group since l983-ish. My main connection has been fundraising. My wife, Jenni, and I have helped at different Flag Days, especially running the Hertford one. We have also worked hard at collecting outside shops such as Tesco’s for 12 hours a day on Saturdays and Sundays. In February Jenni and I both had birthdays and our children decided that a visit to the Millennium Wheel was a suitable present.

On the 23rd February, a Hertford taxi, which had been adapted to take wheelchairs, pulled up at our house It was, in fact, a London Cab with no passenger seat. The driver produced ramps and I was wheeled in and placed in the empty passenger area next to the driver, facing backwards.

We set off from Hertford down the A1 through Enfield, Tottenham, Stoke Newington and down into the centre of London. I mention the route because it took us through areas that I hadn’t seen for some years, having worked as a Police Officer in all of them. There have been changes but the sites brought back many memories. We arrived at the rear of County Hall where ramps were produced again and I was rolled out of the taxi. We had our mobile phone and the drivers number should he get moved on before our return.

If you manage to get to the Wheel early enough, we suggest you look at the two kiosks which are about thirty yards away from the entrance, one of which sells food and drink and the other, memorabilia. Amongst the souvenirs is a brochure, two pages of which show the overall sight from the Wheel, with individual landmarks numbered. It is useful to have this while you are looking at the sites as some of them aren’t as obvious as others.

The entrance to the Wheel is via a series of ramps At the end of the first one is a photographic booth where you can have your photo taken. Eventually you arrive at the entrance to your cabin. The Wheel normally continues turning as people board, but for people in wheelchairs it is stopped briefly. As far as we can remember, the number of people entering each pod is limited to ten and this enables people to move around easily. We think that there would be a limit on the number of wheelchairs allowed in each cabin as they would get in each others way.

The day we went was overcast, yours may be sunny and warm but the pods are air-conditioned and comfortable. Even so, it still may be worth taking a hat and sunglasses and don’t forget cameras and possibly binoculars. Even though there’s no sense of movement the trip is over all too quickly. The staff were helpful and cheerful throughout and more than willing to chat.

As you leave the pod via the ramps, you pass a booth which contains the results of the photographs you had taken on the way in and you can choose which (if any), you want. You may well be visiting in small groups, so perhaps a group photograph, if you want one, would be easier to take before you go on.

Walking/rolling past the two booths that we mentioned earlier, you’ll come to a flat entrance into County Hall - this leads to a cafeteria and toilets. There are two disabled toilets which are very spacious and seem very well designed.

We found the day very enjoyable and even though (as a result of bad traffic) we arrived later than our ticket time, this was no problem; the staff just coped and we went straight on,