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Now that fall colors are really starting to pop, here's a great opportunity to enjoy all that the great outdoors has to offer here in Otsego County in a fun and unique way. Hop on a Rail Explorers rail bike at the Charlotte Valley Railroad depot in Milford, NY before the beautiful fall foliage colors disappear.

It's something you can do with friends or family since the railbikes come with electric pedal assist. What that means is that even though the route you take is a 12-mile roundtrip to Cooperstown and back, it's an easy peddle and nothing to worry about in terms of physical exertion. Thank goodness right?!

I am excited to try this new recreational addition to the county since I've always wanted to try a railbike after seeing them in action in Phoenicia in the Catskills. I've been on my share of train rides from the Milford Depot over the years and have always enjoyed the beautiful countryside scenery with a variety of sights: wooded areas, farmland, a trestle bridge to cross over, and beautiful views of the Susquehanna River. It's so easy to appreciate the view from the train and I imagine, even better views on a railbike with nothing in the way of taking all the great scenery in.

If you're wondering how much time to commit to this railbike adventure, it's about two and half hours on the railbike, to Cooperstown and back to Milford. You can ride a tandem railbike for two or a quad railbike with four people. Just so you are aware, if having electric assist for peddling seems to easy for you, it's an option you don't have to use but personally, I'm ALL about the electric assist on a 12-mile venture!

If you're considering a railbike ride out of Milford, reservations are recommended by visiting www.railexplorers.net or calling 877-833-8588.

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