Reaching for things in your pocket, whilst in your wheelchair can be a pain and no one wants to be THAT person holding up a queue.
So what do you do when your in a wheelchair and want easy access to stuff like your keys, wallet or passport?
Well before the best bet was to wear jacket or something with pockets on your top half or have a bag like this –
Now for me an under seat bag (like the one pictured above), never solved the problem of easily being able to grab what I need. I still found myself having to fumble around, because well, everything was under my seat.
The pouch on the back used to be another way to go, but it could be equally as challenging to reach behind you and have a rummage around.
Both of the above had issues, then came the Quokka Bag.
Quokka took the interesting step of mounting their bag onto the side of the wheelchair, which means it does create that ‘easy reach’ solution.
When I tested it, it felt like having a third pocket, something just by the side of me that I could reach into. The wallet, keys and phone problem definitely disappeared.
There are some catches though…
If have a wide wheelchair to begin with, the Quokka bag may not be for you because it will increase the width of your chair and the turning circle.
And while you can take the the bag off, like so:
This will not help in aisle ways or shops with crowded displays. Equally, I took mine on a night out with me and although it meant that my stuff was in easier reach, the bag does get in the way.
Or perhaps to put it another way, people find a way to find it.
I have to also state that both the bag and the mounting system are sturdy as hell. They even survived a trip on a plane without me removing the bag.
On a personal level, my desire to reduce unwanted ‘friction’ with other people and objects means that would not use this as long term solution.
Find Quokka Bag here – https://quokkabag.com/
