Travelers on the Mountain Bay Trail might have thought they stepped back in time as a group of teenagers in pioneer clothing and pushing handcarts full of gear passed by Thursday.
These “pioneers,” however, were members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints who were learning about their faith and their religion’s founders.
“It’s really cool to see everyone so willing to do this to see what our ancestors did for our religion,” said Hannah Williams, 14, of Shawano.
The event, called Faith in Every Footstep, started Thursday morning and continues through Saturday. The teens are learning about the struggles of mid-19th century Mormon pioneers who traveled 1,000 miles to Salt Lake Valley.
Thursday’s trek, which drew around 90 people from Manitowoc to Marquette, Michigan, started in Thornton at the head of the Mountain Bay Trail and headed west seven miles to Lyndhurst, where the group stopped for lunch and other activities.
The travelers wore homemade period-style clothing, including wool pants, skirts and bonnets, and pushed handcrafted carts with their gear, which excluded any type of technology.
“We want them to realize what the pioneers went through as they crossed the plains heading west,” said Anne Elkins, president of the Green Bay Young Women’s Stake (which is roughly comparable to a diocese in other religions). “Their lifestyle was just so different, and the reasons they went are amazing, just to see the conviction these people had in their faith and their courage.”
Activities throughout the three-day excursion include pioneer games, re-enactments, story telling, square dancing, campfires and sleeping under the stars.
On Thursday night, the group made camp at Bohl Field in Lyndhurst. The trek continues Friday as it heads back to Maas Field in Thornton, where the group will partake in a women’s pull to re-create the moments when women had to push their own carts after the men were called to serve missions or to fight a war.
Susan Hoffman, of Shawano, a member of the planning committee for the event, said they wanted to provide teens with a realistic look at the pioneer life.
“There was a lot of hardship (for the pioneers), but there was also a lot of great experiences and miracles that occurred that got them from where they started,” Hoffman said.
Williams said ticks have been one of the biggest problems during the trek, adding that everyone has worked together to get through any struggles.
“Everyone pitches in, so it’s not too bad,” Williams said.
Aurora Paquette, 18, of Iron Mountain, also a planning committee member, said the trek is a dream come true after years of reading about it.
“Seeing it all fall into place has really just made my day,” Paquette said. “It was an amazing experience.”
The pioneer trek will conclude in Thornton on Saturday.
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