It is the old railroad bed. That RR has not been abandoned long enough to become impassible to walkers. All I need to do is look at the overhead shot to see that I could easily navigate my way down that route. It might be tough in spots, but that is how walks in the woods are sometimes. Heck, many trails in state forests and state parks are built on top of old logging RR tracks...over 100 years old.
So, maybe we just will have to disagree. But, there is stuff down that way. Stuff that folks could see from the old RR line that time of year. And, it would not take to long to walk down and back from where that stuff is.
I realize that, if we just eliminate that route out of hand, it leaves us left stuff to mull over. But, I really do not see the long-range benefit of simply discounting that route altogether.