joseph branch railriders

My hubby and I had completed the 70k Alpenrace the day before and wanted a chill, scenic day the day we rode the rails. Kim delivered!!This is a very fun, super scenic, private and quiet tour of the Wallowa valley. Downhill to Enterprise is a hoot, and the very slight uphill on the way back to Joseph is enough of a workout to make you remove your jacket, but overall an easy ride. We highly recommend this to anyone that is interested in a unique, affordable, very fun afternoon. Just do it, you will love it.

On a recent trip to Joseph Oregon.as we walked down Main Street, my guy and I ran across a sign for something called Joseph Branch Rail Riders. Intrigued, we stopped to talk to the owners.What it was, was a chance to pedal along railroad tracks using a specially built vehicle with flanged wheels to fit on the tracks. Each vehicle had two seats and two sets of bike pedals. Anita, the owner, explained that we would pedal the vehicle from Joseph to Enterprise along no longer used railroad tracks. 12 miles round trip. She runs three times a day at 9am, noon, and 3 pm. Friday, Sat and Sunat a cost of $20 apiece for adults.After discussing it, we decided to give it a try. She told us where to meet her, a few blocks away.When we showed up, she outfitted us with bike helmets and adjusted the seats to fit us.She showed us how the brakes worked, and gave us a few safety instructions.She then told us she would meet us in Enterprise, and we were off.Well. it was a blast. Rolling along the rails. all by ourselves (no one else did the trip at the 3 pm time). We rolled past houses, farms and fields. Saw cattle, horses, various birds, and many deer. Several times we saw spotted fawns lying in the brush. Went past and over brooks and streams and even over a small trestle.The way there, was super easy. We were on a slight downgrade and didn't even really need to pedal. Several times we had to stop when we came to roads which were well marked with stop signs.When we arrived at Enterprise, she came up behind us a few minutes later. We hadn't even known she was behind us, so we had felt like we were all alone out there.The way back was a bit more work as it was a slight uphill grade. Not too bad though. We are not entirely out of shape, but we're not super fit. But we had no trouble. At one point, she came up behind us and asked if we wanted a power assist One of the vehicles has a small motor on it. and if you need or want assistance, you can be pushed. But we declined, as we were enjoying pedaling.All in all, it was a lot of fun. We both enjoyed it immensely and plan to do it again when we next in Joseph.. .