Fort QuAppelle Touchwood Hills Trail
Details
Fort Qu'Appelle-Touchwood Hills Trail
Near this marker you can see ruts which mark the historic cart trail between Fort Qu'Appelle and The Touchwood Hills.
Charted first by Indians, it was used as a regular trade route by the Hudson's Bay Company from the 1850's. It was an important link in the great overland route from Fort Ellice to Edmonton, often referred to as the Carlton Trail.
As settlement grew in the Saskatchewan Valley during the seventies and eighties the route took on greater importance. The Dominion Telegraph was constructed by its side and it carried a growing traffic of settlers, provisions and her Majesty's mails.
In 1886, the first stage robbery in the Canadian West took place on the 'Salt Plains' North of the Touchwood Hills.
After the completion of the Qu'Appelle, Long Lake and Saskatchewan Railway in 1890, the importance of the trail diminished but sections were used for local traffic for many years.
Location
| Land Location | NE S02 T22 R14 W2M |
| Rural Municipality | 217 - Lipton |
| GPS Location | 50° 50' 46.86" N, 103° 49' 54.91" W |
