• One-day handcart excursions at This Is The Place Heritage Park, 2601 Sunnyside Ave. Lunch will be provided, along with pioneer games, songs and a "women's pull." Call 924-7502 for reservations.

• "We Came to Zion," a new theatrical presentation featuring stories of the handcart pioneers, is also playing at This is The Place Heritage Park. Cost is $4 per person. For reservations, call 582-1847.

• The Mormon Handcart Pageant, July 26-29 at the Juab County Fairgrounds in Nephi. Now in its fourth year, the pageant includes stories and scenes from the Willie and Martin handcart companies. Admission is free, and it begins at dusk. Food vendors, a craft fair, displays and a history fair will precede the pageant nightly. For information, see www.handcartpageant.com or call 1-435-623-0196.

• LDS documentary filmmaker Lee Groberg's latest film for PBS is titled "The Sweetwater Rescue" and is about the ill-fated handcart companies. A date for the one-hour special has yet to be announced, but Groberg said he believes it may be sometime in October.

While this year marks the 150th anniversary of the handcart pioneers, re-enacting the handcart experience has become a popular activity among LDS youths worldwide who participate in treks.

One of the most sought-out places to hold a trek is in central Wyoming, where the church has purchased land and established the Mormon Handcart Site near Martin's Cove, where dozens of handcart pioneers died in the cold.

"The impact that these young people experience on these treks is just phenomenal. They grow up in the cities, then spend three days stepping back in time. It has a miraculous effect in their lives," said Eldean Holliday, director of volunteer operations at Martin's Cove.

However, the impact the thousands of trekkers have had on the adjacent federal land has resulted in agreements between the church, federal land managers and the American Civil Liberties Union over limitations on the number of people allowed in the area each year and restrictions in proselyting by church volunteers.

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E-mail: carrie@desnews.com