Photo courtesy of Brandi Kuhry

ALL ABOARD THE VALENTINE EXPRESS!

Rail Explorers Las Vegas says, “Do the locomotion!”

By Stacey Gualandi

For a recent romantic rendezvous with my Valentine (aka, my husband), we decided to try something a little off the beaten track: an 8-mile roundtrip rail ride, complete with bubbly, a bonfire, and bite-sized bonbons.

Talk about a Love Train….

Rail Explorers Las Vegas, the year-round, all-ages, outdoor-adventure attraction, begins and ends at the Nevada State Railroad Museum in Boulder City.

That is just one of four locations in the U.S. that provides tandem and quad-Explorer pedal-powered rail bikes (with the help of custom-built electric motors for those pedal-challenged). It also offers several different tour packages to Choo Choo choose from, like the Desert Sunset, the Twilight Round-up, or the Southwest Ramble.

But for Valentine’s Day this year, Las Vegas Division Manager Heather Abel opted to switch tracks by adding a new joy ride: the “Fireside Sweetheart” tour.

“We have the luxury of being open 12 months out of the year in Las Vegas,” says Abel. “So, I can be creative with theme rides.”

There were dozens of us love-struck couples on board, ready to sip some sparkling wine and chew on chocolate, but one man went off the rails by taking the Valentine theme to heart.

Julian Gadjri, on holiday from the Netherlands, popped the question to his sweetheart of four years, Hashini Dalpatadu, in the Rails’ signature red Adirondack chairs, surrounded by fire pits, twinkling café lights, and a full moon. (The only thing missing was the Tunnel of Love!)

“I’ve been planning for a couple of months,” says Gadjri. “I wanted to do something really special.”

“He told me to dress up, but I had no idea,” says Dalpatadu. “He said he wanted to make our family complete. We have two Pomeranian doggies. Ha!”

Photo courtesy of Rail Explorers

Now before you think Julian’s idea was a train wreck, Hashini did say yes!

It was a first for Rail Explorers and a real treat for the rest of the train gang. We even got a photo with the happy couple back at the station and assured them it’s all gravy (train) from here.

Next up: an Easter Brunch Round-up. Don’t you dare miss the chance to hop aboard Rail Explorers Las Vegas!