Wagon train ride lauded as success

An old-fashioned “wagon train” ride, complete with three draft horse teams and individual riders from across the region, was held this past weekend beginning at Harold and Karen Kellar’s residence in Devlin.
And given the sunny weather and excellent turnout, co-organizer Karen Kellar deemed the event a success.
“It was great,” she enthused. “We had lovely weather and we were very happy with how everything went and how everyone got along.”
The group of about 30 people—young and old hailing from Devlin, Stratton, Kenora, and Dryden—gathered at the Kellar residence Saturday morning and started out on a 25-km trek to the Dance Community Hall along Highway 613 North.
Kellar noted while it was quite cool that morning, everyone was able to stay warm until the temperature began to rise in the afternoon.
She added traffic was very courteous along the way and many people stopped to take pictures.
“We figured out we were traveling about six miles an hour,” she chuckled, noting they reached the hall before 4 p.m.
More than 60 people then joined in the potluck dinner and social evening there.
“We had a barbecue. We did up burgers and everyone brought a dish for the potluck dinner,” Kellar indicated. “Then Bob Brown came from Stratton with his harmonica and Emily Smith brought her accordion and they played music for a couple of hours.
“Some [people] even got up and danced.”
The majority of people participating in the “wagon train” brought their sleeping bags, blankets, and pillows and stayed at the community hall overnight.
After breakfast Sunday morning, the group got ready to head out again, taking a different route home this time around.
“Everyone was really good at pitching in and helping out,” Kellar added. “Every comment we got was favourable.”
The last time a similar event was held was nearly 19 years ago and, until now, they had never got around to planning a second “wagon train.”
Kellar explained they always had wanted to do it again and after talking it over with several other “teamsters” during the Rainy River Valley Agricultural Society’s Fall Fair in Emo last month, they got the incentive they needed.
Kellar, along with Les and Erin Caul of Devlin, began making the arrangements.
“There are a lot of people who would like to do it again . . . and apparently there are more people who would have liked to come but weren’t able to, so they’d like us to do it again and give more of an advanced notice,” Kellar remarked.
And given the interest, she said they likely will hold the event again next year.
“In another 19 years we’ll be getting up there in age, so we’d better not wait that long again,” Kellar said.
While the weekend event was put together rather quickly, Kellar said she would like to put more planning into the next event and make it even bigger and better.
“There are a real mixture of people and it’s a nice family adventure,” she noted. “We saw deer and different wildlife—it really brings you back to nature.”
Kellar said fall is a nice time to hold the “wagon train,” but added she’d like to look at holding the event on Labour Day weekend next year since it would give an extra day for people to recuperate and travel if they were coming from out of town.
“We’d like to get more people out—the more, the merrier,” she stressed.
Kellar also thanked Laverne Desserre and Bob Steele for the use of their properties, as well as the Dance Community Club for use of the hall.
“We really lucked out, especially with the weather,” Kellar continued. “I hope we’ll get good weather next year.”