Located off Wilson Road near Merrill is the O'Grady Barn Quilt.

Most people think of quilts as decorative blankets used while sitting on chairs or lying in bed.

Think again.

For more than 100 years quilts, or more specifically barn quilts — brightly painted “quilt blocks” on wood that are affixed to a barn or structure — have been seen across rural America. And, thanks to the efforts of two groups — the Five Friendly Towns of Klamath Country and the Barn Quilt Team — colorful, patterned barn quilts are being seen in the Klamath County communities of Merrill, Malin and Bonanza along with the adjoining far Northern California communities of Dorris and Tulelake.

Because the quilts are in two adjoining states, the developing series is being called the “Connecting Borders Barn Quilt Trail.” Along with the several already in place, more are being added. A brochure and audio tour are being developed to guide visitors along the auto trail and provide information about the blocks and their locations. As the groups explain, the barn quilts are intended to “celebrate our agricultural and quilting heritage, bring art to our rural areas of the region for residents to enjoy, and to encourage tourism.”

When the guides are completed, they’ll also provide background information on the quilts. One example is the “Sawtooth Star,” a Barn Quilt on the Tulelake Cold Storage Building located along Highway 139 in Tulelake. It will tell how the 1940 building, which was used to store sacked potatoes, is now owned by Doublehead Enterprises.

The guide will tell the history two Dorris Barn Quilts, “The Saw Blade” on the Dorris Lumber & Moulding building and “The Road to California” on the Butte Valley Museum.

As leaders of the group emphasize, creating those and other Barn Quilts is a cooperative effort that involves the property owner and committee members. What follows is a step-by-step process. Blocks are drawn by hand or on a computer and various color combinations are evaluated. The wood is then carefully prepared, sanded and puttied until smooth. Scribers then transfer the block design to the wood surface, which is primed, taped and painted. Ed Staub & Sons Petroleum in Tulelake houses the blocks in two warm rooms while multiple layers of paint are applied. At least 24 hours of drying time are required between each coat.

Tulelake is also the location of another Barn Quilt along the tour, the “Shepard’s Light Block.” Others along the route include “North Star” in Merrill and “Prosperity” in Bonanza.

Those and other completed quilts will soon be joined by others, including the “Water Wheel,” which will be placed on the Langell Valley Community Center, and “Farmer’s Field,” which will be hung on a Bonanza Century Farm.

More blocks are in various planning phases. Leaders of the Basin Quilt Team, including Rural Klamath Connects, say grants from Travel Oregon and the Siskiyou Arts Council helped get the Barn Quilt Trail started. Discover Klamath and Discover Siskiyou will help market the trail.

The BQT Team includes Sharron Moulder, Diane McKoen, Robin King, Reba VanAcker, Deb Worch, Chris Baldwin, Sue Huffman, Lorrie Ross, Karen Dissmore and Linda Woodley.

The guide is still a work in progress, but traveling the Barn Quilt Trail is a pleasure because it goes through farmlands and ranches in often overlooked rural communities.

A list of completed Barn Quilts — a list that is being expanded — includes:

• Tulelake — Tulelake Cold Storage, Highway 139, and Alcorn Family Barn, Stateline Road
• Dorris — Dorris Lumber & Moulding, East Fourth Street, and Butte Valley Museum Box Factory, South Butte Street
• Merrill — Ahern Family Barn (by County Cork), Falvey Road, and O’Grady Barn, Wilson Road
• Malin — Wright Party Barn, Old Malin Highway, Merrill. Waiting to be installed: Heather Wright Barn, Highway 50
• Bonanza — Summit Real Estate, Highway 70, Bonanza.
• Waiting to be installed: Cheyne Family Barn, East Langell Valley Road