It wasn't ever a commercial passenger railway—instead being devoted solely to carrying freight for the mining communities of the first major discovery of silver ore, the Comstock Lode.
Back then, that part of Nevada—mostly centered around Virginia City—was considered the western part of the Utah territory.
Naturally, I wanted to experience as much of the V&T as I could while I was in the area.
Although 24 miles of rebuilt tracks are active between Carson City and Virginia City, the operation of those rights of way is somewhat fragmented. There's only one roundtrip train departure from Carson City to Virginia City per day, on Saturdays and Sundays only.
I decided to ride the rails from Carson City's V&T Eastgate depot in a different way: on a railbike.
In 2020, he V&T Railway Commission had to suspend its heritage rail operations for the COVID-19 pandemic—which opened the door for Freedom Rail to step in and lease use of the tracks for its open-air experience.
But what began as a pandemic pivot turned out to be a really exciting and unique way to experience the rail line.
After boarding at the Eastgate depot, getting a safety briefing, and buckling in, you're sent pedaling off to the south...
...heading into the Carson River Valley.
We were warned that we'd have to be comfortable for 3 miles to the turnaround point...
...but this stretch was easy and scenic, with a downward grade that let gravity do its job...
...with practically no pedaling and no motorized assistance.
That was important for me, since I was on a railbike built for four—all by myself.
That meant I could spend most of my time taking in the scenery and snapping photos...
...rather than worrying about falling too far behind the rest of the group.
On a bicycle, 3 miles is really nothing anyway—and before I knew it, signs were warning me that the end of the track was coming up in just a half-mile.
I took a moment to peer over to my left, into the canyon...
...trying not to think too much about the sheer drop-off...
...or wonder too much what would happen if I didn't end up on the right track at the switch rails.
With the rest of the tour group and our guides in sight, I made it look like I was pedaling—but I still didn't really have to. I'd been coming in hot the whole time. I made liberal use of my hand brake.
Our guides set up a makeshift turntable on the tracks to get us pointing back north, towards the Eastgate depot...
...while we admired the site of the former Eureka mill.
While I began my journey in the back of the tour group (and would brake to keep from getting too close to anyone in front of me)...
...I now found myself leading the pack...
...heading uphill.
It was impossible to pedal that four-seater all by myself, especially working against gravity...
...so I let the motor assist take me up the hill and around the bend.
I kept thinking I was cheating a little bit. Certainly those who pedaled the velocipedes of the 19th century to inspect the tracks and provide support to the mining operations didn't have a motor.
But it sure was fun. More fun than walking a railtrail.
It was even almost as fun as riding a train. In some ways, railbiking was a better experience because of how close to the tracks you are.
It really feels like you're part of the scenery.
We returned to the V&T depot at Eastgate...
...but we didn't stop there...
...instead continuing our journey north, beyond the depot...
...into the area known as Mound House, Nevada (another one of the Comstock Lode communities).
That's where Highway 50 (the "Lincoln Highway") runs through town...
...and where we crossed a V&T railroad bridge that spans across the highway...
...near where the Pony Express once stopped...
...and near the original right-of-way at Highlands Drive...
...which is now a mobile home park, a development that forced a slight rerouting of the rebuilt railway.
The V&T Railway's "Long Line" train to Virginia City heads in that same direction...
...but we only experienced a little bit of that stretch of track before once again turning around...
...and heading south again...
...back over the V&T bridge...
...across Highway 50...
...past American Metal Worx and ABC Heating and Sheet Metal...
...and back where we started from.
Freedom Rail asks you to pedal even with the motor running, because "it's part of the experience." Personally, I didn't see the point of pedaling when I felt zero resistance. Later, they said it was because it helps not drain the batteries quite as quickly.
OK.
But I don't think there's any shame in accepting help when it's available. And I don't see the point in exhausting yourself when you don't have to.
Life is hard enough.
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