A Smashing Good Time

In addition to 48 National Parks, Canada is home to a few World Heritage Sites. A few are conveniently in Southern Alberta; Dinosaur Provincial Park, Waterton, the Rocky Mountain Parks, Writing on Stone and Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump. As you may have noticed, many these have been stops on this autumn's journey.

Growing up and living my whole life in Alberta, it would be easy to take for granted all these amazing places that we have in our back yard. On a global and political scale Canada is a young country. We lament not having an old architectural history like Europe. We forget how rich our prehistory and natural history is. One of my goals with my travels and this blog is to appreciate what we have close to home.

For an armchair archeologist like myself, Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump is a "must see" place. I have been here several times, but I have been discovering that in different stages of life, your experience is unique. Perspective, knowledge and point of view change over time. The last time I was here, the boys were small. It was Mother's Day weekend, and we had travelled to Del Bonita, South of Lethbridge, for my sister-in-law's bridal shower. Not the most exciting event for 5 & 7 year old boys. 

The center is built into the hill in a way that makes it blend with the prairie.

Since we were driving home on Sunday, which was Mother's Day, I decided we needed to do something fun. This may have been one of my very first random road trip moments. We stopped at a grocery store in Lethbridge and picked up picnic supplies. We spent a wonderful afternoon exploring Head-Smashed- In Buffalo Jump. It was the first time we saw a marmot in person. He was just sunning himself on a rock by the path, totally ignoring all the people. 

Views from the top walkway go on for miles. One of the interpretive signs had the skyline of the mountain range in the distance, marked with the names of all the mountains. I could see the one I hiked yesterday to the waterfall, Blakiston. 

This site was used for about 6000 years by the local people to harvest food for the winter. It's location, being far from railroads or settlements, means it was left undisturbed until it could be excavated by archeologists. As someone who gardens, forages, preserves and has butchered my own food, I was particularly interested in the methods of preserving food. 

View of the cliffs from the bottom. There is a self guided walking trail at the bottom of the cliff with numbered signs on rocks to point out significant details about the Jump's history and the natural history of the area. I did not see any marmots on this trip, which I was disappointed by. I have only seen them a few times in my life and would have liked a good picture. I also did not see the bear or cougar reported to be in the area, which I was relieved by, since I was on foot!

The interpretive center is organized in a unique way. They suggest you watch the film first, to get good feel for the time in history, the people and the unique area. Then you start at the very top of the building and work your way down. The top floor has access to the cliff trail, where you stand at the top of the Jump. After you work your way through the museum, you can walk the lower trail, which takes about 45 minutes. 

Head-Smashed-In is open year round, but the café was not open at this time of year. There are a few picnic sites scattered around. One is conveniently close to the parking lot (which is at the bottom of the hill) so you don't have to haul everything up with you. There are elevators inside and a drop off spot by the door for visitors who need it. It took a couple of hours to do everything, so packing water was important. It was hot, even in October and I got a sunburn (I left my hat in the car).

Leif and Saga checking out the archeology display

I like to think that trips like these were inspiring to my boys. I hope it has taught them to appreciate other cultures, learn from the mistakes of the past and see the things that are right in front of them. My oldest is currently taking some Archeology classes at University. I can go from being an armchair historian to living vicariously through his studies!