Led by sure-footed mules pulling an old wooden wagon fitted with rubber tires, bucket seats and seatbelts, a wagon train crept up a steep bluff overlooking the Missouri River Wednesday on a 240-mile trek across rugged prairie to historic Deadwood.

The 17-day trip marks the 100th anniversary of the last wagon train to travel the route to the Black Hills. After gold was discovered in 1874, one of the shortest and easiest paths for people and freight headed for Deadwood was overland from Fort Pierre.

Some places on the cactus, sagebrush and yucca-dotted prairie still have deep scars from the wagon wheels that rolled over the route for a third of a century.

Gerald Kessler, who raises mules on a ranch 17 miles northwest of here, is the modern-day wagon master. He was chosen because of his experience: He has gone on 78 wagon train excursions since 1990.

Fifty-four wagons, pulled by horses, mules and oxen, will complete all or parts of the current journey. Those riding on the wagons are accompanied by 225 people on horseback.

Some will stick out the whole trip. Others may ride only a day or two.

Many who hope to finish will not.

"I think we'll lose 10 percent the first two days," Kessler said. "People just ain't got themselves in shape and their horses in shape. And we've got a lot of older people that probably haven't ridden 20 miles in 20 years."

There will be many individual catastrophes along the way, he added.

"You're going to have your day-to-day wrecks, breakdowns and buck-offs."

The lure of the open range and the history of the route drew John Aune to ride the path.

"It will bring back some of the old days," said Aune, a retired dairy farmer from Hendricks, Minn.

He acknowledges riding his horse won't be easy at his age, 68.

"I'll have more trouble than my horse, probably," he said while waiting for the caravan to depart.

The wagon train will face searing summer heat, miles of uncertain footing, dicey stream crossings and rattlesnakes - although Kessler said he's only killed one rattler on his ranch this year. Usually, he's killed about 10 by now.

Despite the fits and starts that are not uncommon when trying to organize such a large group of mostly strangers, Kessler remained amiable. He alerted his companions to the dangers ahead and spelled out the rules of road.

"The most important rule is, don't hurt the wagon master," Kessler said, tipping the brim of his big straw hat.

Rain can make the prairie treacherous, and that may force some route changes, he said. But for the most part, within 100 yards or so, the wagon train will follow the original trail all the way to Deadwood, he said.

Slight detours will be made when sticking to the trail would ruin wide swaths of wheat to be harvested this summer, Kessler said.

It's remarkable that all landowners along the trail agreed to let the wagon train pass through their property, Kessler said. Many of them also planned to tag along, although they are not counted in the 300 or so signed up for the trip, he said.

The historic trail was closed in 1908 when railroad trains began moving people and cargo from Fort Pierre to the Black Hills. By that time, easily found gold was scarce and much of the land had been taken over by farmers and ranchers.