Mines and Meadows

Took a few of my buddies here for a bachelor party weekend getaway and we all had a blast. The 7 hour drive from NYC ended up becoming 10 hours after getting stuck in traffic trying to get out of the city and my own ignorance for putting in the wrong address in my car's navigation system.

You can pretty much ATV anywhere on the east coast but this was the only place I found which was a reasonable driving distance from home that let's you navigate ATVs through pitch black mines. On top of that, they have a vast network of super fun off-road trails for you explore. From technical trails with rocky, rooty, twisty climbs, to mud bogs, to fast banked turns and jumps, this place has it all whether you like getting down and dirty or have the need for speed.

We opted for the 3-hour tour for $185 and our guide, Steve, was very knowledgeable and friendly. He took us all over and we got to check out almost every aspect of their trails. After 2.5 hours, we finally made our way into the abandoned limestone mines. It was truly a unique, one of a kind experience.

The cabin we rented was nothing to write home about, but it served its purpose. There were a few surprisingly comfortable cots which were provided but other than that, it was a minimalistic cabin. We were also provided with 50 gallons of water, two charcoal grills, and a fire pit.

One thing worth mentioning is if you have your own ATV you can just get a day pass or weekend pass instead of taking a guided tour.

Overall, a very memorable weekend and I would definitely return for some more ATV action.

If you're put off by the overall number of stars earned by Mines and Meadows, I would encourage you to read the full reviews across several platforms. The complaints mostly paint the picture of the internecine disputes between the desired riding surfaces of dirt bikers vs. ATV riders, hardcore enthusiasts vs. beginners, members vs. day visitors, etc...

I had a tremendous day at Mines and Meadows as a casual, inexperienced ATV rider! And my more experienced companions had a lot of fun as well.

We took the 4.5-hour SUNRISE DAY TOUR and rode in a 4-seater. I had prepared myself for what could have been hours of bone jangling, followed by soreness the next day. However, brand new, and spotless, $26k machines made it as comfortable and safe of a ride as possible - even at breakneck speeds through heavily rutted trails. (Don't get me wrong - you will get jangled and jarred, and I wouldn't recommend it for someone with neck or back issues. But it's nothing like what my previous frame of reference was: tearing around on an old ATV with decades old shocks.)

Some key points:
1) This is a premium experience at a premium price. If you have the means, I highly recommend it.

2) Great customer service: Our guide was inexperienced but personable and did a great job making sure that we took our full allotment of time and getting some great action photos and video which were delivered by email the following day. The owner clearly cares about the business and is involved in every aspect, down to giving the talk in the mine and ensuring that the service was very customer focused.

3) The wet and muddy part is exhilarating, and you do that just before the lunch break. You will be 100% saturated in muddy water and you should definitely wear boots and bring old towels, and a change of clothes & shoes. The post-lunch mine tour would have been a difficult and freezing experience in wet, muddy gear.

4) There are long stretches of driving on the wooded trails to get from one location to another. This is pleasant and relaxing. If you have multiple people in the ATV ask the guide to plan out some stops to switch out drivers.

5) If you're prone to motion sickness then sit in the front and take copious amounts of anti-nausea medicine.

Go and have a great time!

Of all the times I have been here, this was by far the worst experience I have ever had.

Thanks to ambassador "Cheryl" and her bad day, she wanted to make my family trip as bad as hers.

Apparently I accidentally got my birthdate wrong by one day on the online form, and that was the tipping point of her day. Aside from almost having to provide a DNA test, she wanted my children to get out of the truck to proof their identity and obtain their wristbands out of the truck. No questions or affirmations were asked of them, and it was a pure power trip to prove her position as Queen of Check In.

Meanwhile, the other 6 people as of noon on a Wednesday that did also attend this extremely very busy day of the week, must have had a great experience.

But my daughter was appalled having to attempt to use this incredibly clean potty john while the ambassador "Cheryl" was more concerned about whether or not my birthdate was correct instead of a clerical error on my part.

I cant say that I will be coming back here anytime soon, or even at all after this experience.

"Cheryl" advised if I had an issue with her policy to take it up with management.

So here I am...

Shitters full.

Had a great time on an ATV tour for an hour and a half/ 2 hrs. The mine was definitely the highlight but the machines were brand new and the guides excellent. All the equipment was spotless clean, helmet, googles. And the courses were well maintained and traveled. The tour offered some deep water spots you can enjoy, and some sand dunes and hills climbs and Rocky descents. Nothing dangerous, but fun and challenging. We will be back next year. And years to come.

The ATV guided tour was not for me . My husband and I were so excited to take the guided tour and only ended up doing 2 of the 4 hrs. Thankfully at hour 2 our ATV over heated due to mud in the radiator and we had to go back to home base to hose it out , so it gave us the opportunity to not continue for the second half . We were disappointed we didn't go to the mine part but after 2 hrs I was so motion sick and it was so dusty that we seriously couldn't see where we driving for many parts . We were basically driving blind at way too fast speeds to keep up with our guide . It would have been way more fun for us had we not been driving so ridiculously fast . Trails were extremely narrow and winding . I seriously don't know how we didn't crash many times over .

Great place full of mud but sometimes it's to much for a 4x4 or dirt bike, but if you are bringing someone's without a dirt bike you can go on the trails me t just for bikes

Went here a couple times last year with some buddies and we liked it enough to get some yearly passes. It's fun and has everything from easy to hard and lots of mud and hill climbs. The events are also a lot of fun here I have been to 3 of them so far and they are always well organized and a good Time. I would recommend this for just about anyone from The Who family, to just a guys day out. Staff has always been helpful to us and they have a little bit of everything you could ever need on the trail located in their shop!

I visited today and as always the staff are all friendly and want you to enjoy yourself. We never have any issues here, we go threw checking in minutes. The on site shop is great. This is a must visit destination. They really work hard to make sure the place is clean and maintained. Love this place.

Took a mine tour with tour guide John. He is in his 80's, but looks much younger! He is very knowledgeable and knows a lot of fun facts, history, ATV information all that. I think if we took the tour without such a personable guide it wouldn't have been as enjoyable. Mines and Meadows has a real gem in John, hope they realize it! This guy makes the whole experience, he's a keeper!

I have been to Mines and Meadows multiple times. Here is what to expect:

Good:
Plenty of trails with varying difficulties
Mostly one-way trails (safer)
Lots of tight corners but also lots of open areas as well
Hill climbs
Mud bog
Mine tour
Not extremely difficult or extremely easy terrain (not too hilly or too flat)
Well maintained trails
Lots of parking
Food truck most days

Not so good:
Really really dusty in some areas and excessively muddy in others
The mud is like clay and super sticky. I have to use a power washer to wash my bike
They are very busy, and sometimes you get stuck in traffic behind other riders
HARD TO NAVIGATE at first if youve never been there. They have gotten better with signage but the spiderweb of trails can be confusing
For some reason every single UTV shows up here. There are so many UTVs that its easy to get stuck behind them
The trails get old after a while, especially because sometimes you only know one route and have to stick to it or end up lost