Adirondack Railbike Adventures

"I was hoping to leave a stellar review, but I just cannot . I will preface this by saying this isn't my first time on a rail bike. My 8 year daughter and I have done the rail bike in the fingerlakes. We had a fantastic time and even she could pedal it by herself for the entine 2.5 miles, without a complain, without help, or even breaking a sweat on a 80+ degree full sun day.
I decided to book the adirondack scenic rail bike for her and I to do, to see the fall foliage and hopefully see some wildlife. Unfortunately , she was unable to go with me so I asked a friend to go with. As we were the only two in our group, we got a 4 seater bike to ourselves and were last in line to set off.(I already knew that by being last, we would be leading the lack on the way back) as we set off, i immediately thought our brake was stuck on because of how difficult it was to pedal. It was like a stationary bike set on the highest incline. I may be out of shape, but not that out of shape. Not even a mile in and we both felt like it was uphill the entire time. We toughed it out, taking off undershirts because they were soaked through and kept going.(Not like we could give up anyways) we got to the halfway point, barely, and noticed everyone was tired but not like we were. On our way back, we couldn't help but pedal as hard as we could just to keep from getting rearended. We felt terrible holding up the group , but let me tell you, this was brutal! Legs were jello , out of breath and soaked through all of our clothing. Mind you it was only like 60 degrees outside.
After looking over my bike I realized that all of the bearings were rusty and dry and the chain was dry. My only thought was that because it was the final weekend , that maybe they just were not maintained.
In closing, I have some suggestions. This tour wasn't a tour, it was a free-for-all bike ride. It would have been way better if each railbike had walkie talkies and there was a guide narrating the entire ride. Telling us about the area, history , etc... . Secondly, I think maintenance is key. Like I said before, I've been on rail bikes before, and my 8yo daughter was able to move the two of us with easy. There was nothing easy about this bike.
Would I recommend this place? Absolutely. But...I highly, highly recommend that you have a party of four fit adults. Maybe my bike had mechanical issues, sure, thats possible. But I dont think so. Sorry about the rant, but I wish I would've read all of the reviews before booking. I'm also very thankful that it wasn't just my 8yo and me. I wouldn't have been able to even go the first mile."

Matthew veshia

"We booked the 9am run because it’s July and it’s HOT. Thankful we did that. We arrived around 8:45am. We went inside to check in which was super fast and easy. At around 8:55 our guide announced we would be walking to the bikes as a group. Once there we were given a safety speech by a guide named Faith. She added some humor in there which we loved! Once we buckled our seatbelts we were on our way! The scenery is lovely…but so are the deer flies. I HIGHLY recommend bug spray. (It is available in the gift shop for purchase) I am 5’8 and opted to move my seat a bit closer to pedal. My daughter at 5’5 was able to reach the pedals with the seat moved all the way forward. My bike had 2 adults and a child. There were sections that were a bit challenging, but we did ok. I’d say their recommendation of 4 to a bike would make that easier. We are all relatively fit, but you’ll feel it in the legs! Dress lightly. We were ALL sweaty when we returned. Air temp was 75 but the humidity was very high. I’d recommend bringing an additional shirt if you go on a warm day. I’ve seen some negative reviews but I figured we’d give it a go. 100% worth it! Get there early to check out the history inside the station, and bring a SMALL backpack with some extra water if you think you’ll need it. The bikes did have a cup holder, but that’s only enough for one bottle."

Shannon Schuler

"Took our family on this ride 9 am. Was nice, wasn’t really scenic , a lot of trees. But being outside and enjoy the occasional deer was nice. My only complaint, the seats were wet, I asked for a paper towel but nothing was offered. So we all sat in the wet seats. I could have brought a towel if I had known. And if I were working that job instead of chatting for twenty minutes I’d have wiped the seats down for the customers."

stacy P