I would say this is an easy hike not moderate in the sense that it’s a gravel path and pretty flat. I guess you could say it’s moderate difficulty because of the length and maybe because you have to figure out how to open the cattle gates. There is a creek/river that runs along the side of the trail and tons of wild life! As you get further down the trail in the summer watch out for bogs flying above so you don’t get nailed by bird bombs. Never fun to clean dookie out of your hair.

I took my two dogs to hike this trail for the first time and the weather and trail conditions were great! We encountered one horse and rider as well as a handful of other hikers enjoying the trail. While I was hoping for a bit more of an off-leash opportunity for my dogs, I resisted due to seeing the horse trailer at the trailhead and there were really no off trail opportunity’s for them to run anyway. The hike is simply the trail (old rail line) with boundary fences along each side. The scenery was great with rock walls lining the end of the trail and/or river throughout. I saw a garter snake, fish jump, a bald eagle, and many other birds while out on this hike. Final thing to mention is that in spite of having my dogs on tick prevention meds, we discovered at least a dozen ticks on my dogs and myself after we got home. Tis the season for ticks.

This is a really nice flat trail for a spring stroll.  Lots of greenery and the river is full of water.   We also saw a decent variety of birds, including a really interesting sparrow colony on a trailside basalt cliff.  The little basin at the end of the trail has some beautiful basalt formations, and the railway tunnel on the opposite bank is picturesque.

We hiked this trail in winter and most of it was in good condition, wet but ok. A few spots were icy and we kind of had to squeeze up on the side of the trail. The first quarter mile after the parking area were pretty bad because trucks going to some pasture/farm had driven on it so it was muddy with deep, water filled ruts. Other than that we really enjoyed the walk. The trail is all along the river which is left in its natural state here and not concreted in like in the town of Colfax. The cliffs and rock formations along the river are really cool and interesting. The trail was deserted, we met just one couple whose dog had an encounter with a porcupine, so keeping the dog leashed is a good idea. Overall a really nice walk if you don't want to drive for hours into the wilderness and I'll definitely return in spring to check for wildflowers.

This is a relatively flat trail that goes out about 2.5 miles to a turnaround at the river, although there is the possibility of more distance/length by following a smaller trail up into the hillside. My group turned around at the end by the river, with the tunnel across the way staring back at us. Therefore, it's a good 5-mile loop. You can run or walk, although the pathway is dirty and gravel—not paved, so run at your own risk. The hike was great for our dog, and the scenery was very nice. We saw a mama moose and her little one at the end of the trail by the river, and that was a nice treat. They looked at us very curiously, and our dog wanted to play with them, but he was leashed, of course. There are spots where perhaps you could unleash a dog, but the trail had plenty of hikers on it, so use discretion there. Overall, a pleasant 1/4-day hike that was leisurely and healthy.