Railroad Adventure
It's not often that two interests come together in one activity. Rarer still is when three interests come together, but when they do, you can be sure it will be a good time.
Recently, a friend posted a link on Facebook about to a new "adventure activity" in the Adirondacks. It combined several things that this family enjoys. With the possible exception of Katherine, who prefers to hide away in her room reading, we like to be outside. We also enjoy bike rides (again, Katherine is the exception) and railroads...and history. We even made a motorcycle ride part of the day's journey.
So the Rail Explorers adventure is a railroad mounted bike. You can rent a two-seat bike or a four-seat bike, depending on your needs. We took a four-seater, of course. The "sled" has four recumbent style bike seats with pedals (and one of the seats has a hand brake), a floor for easy boarding, and a basket with several bottles of water.
Our rail/bike was part of a caravan of two and four-seat bikes. At three or four points along the way, we had to stop as a group and then cross roads with automotive traffic. To make this process safer, they have flaggers who run ahead of our caravan to stop traffic while we pass.
During our six mile ride, we talked about railroad history in the US and discussed the method of track laying and tools used. We theorized about the age of the track and it's parts, and how the track was laid. We had to climb a couple of hills, but the grade is low so the climb is long and gradual. And with each climb came a nice coast down the other side of the hill. When we arrived at the end of the six mile ride, we watched as the handlers put each bike on a mini turn-about that would turn point them back to where we came from so that the next group could board and take the bikes back to the train station (tickets are one-way). We took a shuttle back to the station where gathered up our motorcycle gear and prepared for the ride home.
Not bad for one day; motorcycle ride, bike ride, train ride, outdoors, off the beaten path, something new, and history...all in one day's adventure.
Recently, a friend posted a link on Facebook about to a new "adventure activity" in the Adirondacks. It combined several things that this family enjoys. With the possible exception of Katherine, who prefers to hide away in her room reading, we like to be outside. We also enjoy bike rides (again, Katherine is the exception) and railroads...and history. We even made a motorcycle ride part of the day's journey.
So the Rail Explorers adventure is a railroad mounted bike. You can rent a two-seat bike or a four-seat bike, depending on your needs. We took a four-seater, of course. The "sled" has four recumbent style bike seats with pedals (and one of the seats has a hand brake), a floor for easy boarding, and a basket with several bottles of water.
The six mile stretch of railroad that these "bikes" run on has been unused for thirty-five years. The views are special because very few people get to see them and, in fact, we are among the small group of humans who have taken this rail/bike journey as the operation has only been open for a month. We rode through forest, along streams, and past lakes; it was gorgeous...and fun. Even Katherine thought so.
During our six mile ride, we talked about railroad history in the US and discussed the method of track laying and tools used. We theorized about the age of the track and it's parts, and how the track was laid. We had to climb a couple of hills, but the grade is low so the climb is long and gradual. And with each climb came a nice coast down the other side of the hill. When we arrived at the end of the six mile ride, we watched as the handlers put each bike on a mini turn-about that would turn point them back to where we came from so that the next group could board and take the bikes back to the train station (tickets are one-way). We took a shuttle back to the station where gathered up our motorcycle gear and prepared for the ride home.
Not bad for one day; motorcycle ride, bike ride, train ride, outdoors, off the beaten path, something new, and history...all in one day's adventure.
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