Rail Explorers: Amador Division — Attraction in Ione

Fantastic fun family adventure. Did this rail explorer about a week ago and was not disappointed. We knew it was going to be well into the triple digits so we booked the morning departure time. There's a nice little area to entertain you and take photos when you check in. There were several staff wandering around answering questions and offering to take photos. We had two 4-person rail cars. One with 3 children 11-15 and one adult, and the second car was 2 adults 1 4-yo and a 4 month old. We had the 4 yo in the front with one adult and the 4 month old strapped to the chest of the second adult in the back in a Tula. The ride out was fun and scenic. With the motors it isn't hard to get the cart moving and realistically the person with the brakes and the motor is the only one who needs to pedal the whole time. While in the front you often aren't peddling fast enough to engage and help but you do need to help get it started from a stop. The turn around point wasn't anything special but it was nice to get out and look around. Definitely bring water and snacks! We didn't notice it on the ride out but it was mostly "uphill." we didn't really notice it until we started the return trip. You can get going pretty quick on the return trip and you definitely notice the down hill. Only down side was that this can get a little loud. We wish we would have brought headphones or ear plugs for the kids at times. 5/5 stars would...

I treated my girlfriend on a date night to the last available night of the Halloween themed "Ghosts of Gold Country" tour, starting from 6:30pm for around a 2-hour loop through the beautiful golden hills of Ione and Amador AT NIGHT! Throughout the loop they did an over and above setup of random scenes of skeletons and lights, and a hangout/rest area overlooking the valleys during an almost full moon. The trip back down is the best part by far, letting gravity take hold like a runaway train with random cows along the rails in the dark (to keep things interesting to say the least). The trip was finished by getting back to home base greeted with hot chocolate, hot spiced apple cider and S'mores kits over firepits to relax and warm up and go over the excitement after the amazing ride. I would DEFINITELY suggest doing this in either the 2 person or 4 person carts (if you wanted to bring more people), and I look forward to the sunset tour at another date. Now we will be trying the other locations in other states as well! This is such a unique and different type of experience that you can hold as yours to remember, and set yourself apart from the normal, boring date ideas that are always suggested. Thank you to the amazing staff and the caring hospitality they showed throughout the entire time we had with them! 6 out of 5 stars for...

Booked the seasonal "Ghosts of Gold Country" evening tour. My boyfriend & I were celebrating our anniversary and we have wanted to ride the rail cars for quite some time. It was such an amazing experience, we rode at our own pace in between other cars, a lead and follow car with their staff surrounded all the riders as well as they would go around to all the road crossings making sure we were safe when crossing the 3 road sections on the tour. The Ghost of Gold Country tour begins at 6pm, so you start the ride just before Sundown. You get to ride through the country side with an amazing view of the sunset. It takes about an hour to get to the turn around point, where there were tables and chairs to sit while they turn all the rail cars around, and one of the staff members tells you a ghost story about the ghost train in that area back in the mining days. You ride back in the dark and all of their Halloween decorations are on along the trail. They have chairs and fire pits at the check in and end points, a small gift shop, restrooms and they offer water and coffee before and after your trip. You can also purchase smore kits at the gift shops to roast marshmallows on the fire. Over all it was an amazing experience and we had a blast. I would definitely...