Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

7/20/2019

Leaving the Pincher Creek, Alberta farm at 0842, we headed north before turning west in search of the story behind these Buffalo Skulls.

Along the way, we stopped in Fort Macleod, Alberta. The Fort, a preserved Royal Canadian Mounted Police outpost, sounded interesting. We hoped to see the "Musical Ride" that has been going on since 1876, but it was canceled due to rain. The link above will give you a taste of the RCMP riders.

Showers didn't stop us from walking around both blocks of downtown.

Fort Macleod has nicely maintained buildings that would be good on a western themed model railroad.

A resident asked if I was a movie scout. Apparently one of the Ghost Busters sequels will be filmed here.

Neon on the Java Shop made it the most modern looking building in town. Despite the "Eat Here, Eat Often" slogan, the shop had been turned into an antique store and hadn't made a successful go of that. Too early for lunch, we hopped back in the van and turned west to find out about bison.

Just before 1100 we climbed the sandstone cliff to the Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump World Heritage Site. The 18 meter (59 foot) cliff has been used for killing bison for at least 5,700 years.

In addition to the cliff and expansive views, a museum on-site tells of the history of the people and wildlife that lived in the area.

Massive bison bone deposits, some ten meters deep, lie at the bottom of these cliffs.

Before horses were imported from Europe, dogs were used to help move the goods and shelters of the  Plains Indians.

Displays are well done with quotations from various travelers displayed throughout the museum.

We are glad we went a little out of our way to stop here. It is a unique place that does a great job explaining a little of how the Indians and Bison lived over thousands of years.

Check out this free downloadable 15 page book on Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump if you would like more information.

After lunch we turned around and headed east. Stopping in Lethbridge for gas, we noticed a long train trestle. The city website revealed it is the longest and highest trestle bridge of its type in the world. Opened in 1909, the trestle remains in use today by the Canadian Pacific. Unfortunately, there was no train and it was a little damp to get out and explore.

Continuing east, we crossed from Alberta into Saskatchewan at 1700.  Just twenty minutes later, we arrived at the home of fellow Pleasure-Way owners Kathy and Denise in Maple Creek. We met them in Big Timber where they invited us to overnight in their driveway when they heard we were going to be driving across their province.  Thank you both!

We have a good time whenever meeting other owners and enjoy hosting folks in our driveway too.

Today's travel map, Alberta to Saskatchewan