Celebrating the unique and varied culture of the Metis peoples usually involves music. Fiddling, jigging and singing are recognized talents, as is story telling. The roots of the Metis peoples run deep in Manitoba, back to the time before Louis Riel & the founding of the province in 1870. The largest Metis community in North America is found at St. Laurent, on Highway 6, on the shores of Lake Manitoba. At the junction of Highway 26 and the Marquette road you see the markers of the old cemetery and in the center of the plot stands the memorial to Father Belcourt, founder of the mission parish of Baie St. Paul. From here the “Mission Trail” struck out for Oak Point on the shore of Lake Manitoba. When the Canadian Pacific Railway came through Reaburn, fish caught in Lake Manitoba were freighted down the trail to the rail point. The trail was active for about 20 years until the rail line was built through Warren to Lundar in 1903-04. Built along the old Mission Trail, these communities host celebrations each summer.
