The Carlton Trail at this location is known as the Snake Plain
Trail, a stop on the Riverlands Self-Guided Heritage Tour. The
Carlton Trail was an overland Transportation route connecting Fort
Garry (Winnipeg, Manitoba) to Fort Carlton, Saskatchewan and to
Fort Edmonton, AB. The trail was used extensively in the early 19th
century when First Nations and Métis began to trade with both the
Hudson's Bay and North West Companies. The trail became a vital
transportation link for these companies at the height of the fur
trade in the North-West Territories. The 700 km trail entered
Saskatchewan southeast of Melville, meandering northwest near the
present-day communities of Wynyard, Lanigan and Humboldt; it
crossed the South Saskatchewan River at Batoche before reaching
Fort Carlton. A southern section, originating in Humboldt, was
established in the mid-19th century to accommodate traders in the
Humboldt-Bruno region. It crossed the South Saskatchewan River at
Gabriel’s Crossing (operated by Gabriel Dumont) to join up again
with the original trail west of Batoche. The trail continued west
another 980 km from Fort Carlton to Fort Pitt before terminating at
Fort Edmonton.