A couple from Winnipeg is making an 800-kilometer trip that runs all the way from Winnipeg to St. Paul, Minnesota, but instead of taking a car or a plane, they’re taking an ox cart pulled by a shorthorn ox just like the pioneers did back in the 1860s. Terry and Patty Doerksen and the shorthorn ox, Zeke, are traveling the Metris trade route to the Mississippi River in St. Paul to see if the old trade routes give such an amazing and beautiful experience as history has told them.
Terry Doerksen is an avid lover and reader of history who has traveled around Winnipeg and other areas in Canada in many old-fashioned ways, like snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and canoeing. For this trip, however, after reading the book “The Legend of Pierre Bottineau” and hearing how the author said that the classic trails that had been used 164 years ago have been lost to settlement and civilization. Terry looked to try and relive a massive piece of Winnipeg and Minnesota history by enjoying the journey the pioneers took to see what amazing sights, smells, and weather they could encounter while also spreading the good word of the Lord as he traveled. “I’ve done a lot of years of tramping around Winnipeg, by snowshoeing, canoeing, and skiing, for the purpose of declaring that the Lord is the sovereign Lord of the City and praying for Winnipeg, praying for his blessing to touch lives,” Terry Doerksen explained. “So, this is kind of an epic version of those trips where I’m just traveling along and praying for Minnesota as I travel through and the people I meet and sing songs about God’s goodness,” he added. Terry explained that he and his wife had begun planning the trip three years ago, where first Terry had to replace his knees to make the long trip without it being painful for him to walk long distances every day. After eventually having his wife, Patty, join him as well, he began searching for an oxcart and an ox. He then requested the help of his former boss, Armond Jerome, and Phil Doerksen to source him some oak and elm wood and make him a cart while he went to Manitoba to learn how to train an ox for the trip in January 2021. After training with his shorthorn ox, Zeke, on a sleigh and eventually the cart when it was finished, Terry plotted his course of the Red River Trail and began the journey on May 17.
Terry, Patty, and Zeke left from Upper Fort Garry in downtown Winnipeg, where the trail started and received a parade permit and a police escort to help them get out of town, “That was the most terrifying part of the trip for me, trying to figure out if we could get out of the city with all of the stimulation for my ox, Zeke, and hoping he’d be okay and that he’d have the strength to make it out of the city before 4:00 p.m. when my police escort was finished.” Terry Doerksen explained. “It worked well, though, and it felt like God had given us all we needed to get out of the city, so that turned out well,” he added. Each day, the Doerksens look at the weather and their plan of the route to see how far they can make it each day and where they can set up a camp each night, which they spend inside a mobile camper that Patty drives behind him. Now, just under a month later, the Doerksens have arrived in Crookston, where they’re resting for the day at Minnesota Wheat Research and Promotion Council Board Member Tim Dufault’s farm. Despite the good start out of the gate, Terry noted that they are about a week and a half behind schedule due to some issues with cart repairs, but also trying to find proper ox shoes for their ox Zeke due to the pavement of the roads wearing away at his hooves. While he has noted that he is behind schedule, Terry reported that he has a deadline to make it to St. Paul by July 19 and plans to use a slight handicap to help them get there in time. Upon their arrival in St. Paul, Terry says that he will donate his cart to a museum near Winnipeg with the condition that they would pick up the cart and ox to bring them back to Canada when the trip is complete. Terry and Patty will then begin the long road home in their camper back to Winnipeg.
Despite being behind schedule, Terry has been enthusiastic about the trip due to the experiences he’s had meeting Minnesotans and the sights he’s seen. “There’s been a lot of great things, like meeting so many helpful people along the way,” Terry said, “So kudos to northern Minnesotans. You’ve been fantastic and showing interest in the trip, but more importantly, for our sake, you’ve helped us out a lot, so I want to say thank you to you. But we’ve seen a lot of beautiful country, been bitten by a lot of ticks as well, but aside from that, it’s been really neat, and we’ve experienced a lot of things that the early cart drivers would’ve, and part of that is the hospitality of the people along the way. So, it’s been a very good trip so far.” Despite this being Terry’s longest and most challenging journey up to this point, he’s said that he still has many more ideas of places to explore and travel methods to try before he’s ready to call it quits.
The Doerksens are planning to head out on the next part of their journey first thing in the morning on Thursday to try and take advantage of the cooler weather and get as far as they can before the blistering heat rolls in on the weekend. Their next destination is the City of Fertile, hopefully before Sunday, June 19. If you would like to follow more news about the trip and learn more about the origin of the journey down the Red River Trail, you can follow their Facebook page at By Oxcart Down the Red River Trail.
Pictures of part of their trip and their ox can be seen below-
