AllMovie

As the title suggests, Three on the Trail firmly established George "Gabby" Hayes' toothless old-timer Windy Haliday as a permanent member of the regular Bar 20 team. Hayes, who had been placed under contract from the beginning of the series in 1935, had hitherto portrayed various supporting characters including Windy (in Bar 20 Rides Again, 1935) but had more often than not found himself biting the dust well before the final confrontation. Muriel Evans made her second of three appearances with Hoppy and, as always, proved pretty and competent, and silent screen leading man William Duncan, in his first of five appearances, took over as Bar 20 owner Buck Peters, a character that had previously been played by three different actors. As a B-Western, Three on a Trail is above average; as a Hopalong Cassidy entry, however, the film remains extremely middle-of-the-road.