John Wayne riders, wagons on the trail

LIND – Dozens of John Wayne Pioneer Wagons and Riders members will be traversing Adams County this week as part of their annual wagon train.

The group set out last week on a 17-day ride that started in Easton and ends in Tekoa on Sunday, June 5. The wagon train follows the John Wayne Trail, now called the Palouse to Cascades Trail State Park by the state.

“It’s been good,” organization spokesman Tom Short said Monday. “We’re out of Snoqualmie Pass.”

The route takes the group to the rebuilt trestle over the Columbia River at Beverly, then east to Othello and Warden.

Wagons are riders are expected to arrive in Lind on Friday, May 27.

Last year, Lind-area churches hosted the wagon train and provided meals and a camping area, before the cowboys and cowgirls moved on to Ralston.

On Saturday, May 28, John Wayne participants will reach Ralston, where they will camp for a night and celebrate with the Ralston Grange, Short said.

On Sunday, May 29, the wagons and riders are expected to arrive at Revere, a rural location without amenities near the Adams-Whitman County border.

They will stay there for two days to rest up before tackling the last leg of the trail across Whitman County, Short said.

By Tuesday, May 31, the wagon train will reach Ewan, then travel to Malden on Wednesday, June 1, where they will remain for two days to help raise funds for the community that is still rebuilding from the Sept. 7, 2020, Babb Fire, which destroyed the post office, town hall, the fire state, the Eastern Star and numerous other buildings and homes.

Then its on to Rosalia.

Short said the wagon train will move into town June 3, in time for Battle Days, the community’s town celebration.

Battle Days will come with a lot more hoopla this year as the city of Rosalia celebrates its 150th birthday.

On Saturday, June 4, the group will move on to Tekoa, where it will set up camp for the night.

This year’s wagon train culminates with a ride across the restored Tekoa Trestle, which officially opens to the public Sunday morning, June 5.

This is the first year the wagons and riders have been able to cross the Beverly and Tekoa trestles; restoration of both was completed after last year’s ride.

“Crossing these high trestles on horses or bicycles is amazing,” Short said.

According to Short, the addition of those trestles to the Palouse to Cascades trail will mean more visitors for small towns along the route.

It’s that small town hospitality Short said wagons and riders – and others – look forward to.

Short said the John Wayne Pioneer Wagons and Riders started their cross-state tradition 41 years ago to bring awareness of Eastern Washington’s small towns, and to help bolster the rural economy.

At each stop, the wagons and riders celebrate by raising funds for local businesses, schools and groups through meals, auctions and other fundraisers.

“Our riders are on vacation,” Short said. “They want to enjoy it, and make a difference.”