Pincher Creek, Alberta

We left Canmore about midmorning on Thursday, the 20th, heading south. One hundred and seventy miles later, we pulled into Daisy May RV Resort in Fort Macleod, Alberta. Daisy May is the only campground within miles that has electrical service adequate to operate two air conditioners in mid-eighties temperatures. Unfortunately, Daisy May was undoubtably built many years ago and has been allowed to deteriorate badly. The campground map shows a winding series of roads, with camp sites scattered about, but in reality, there are 3 parallel paths with sites jammed in as close as possible. Each pair of sites shares a common utility connection, so one rv of each pair has connections on the wrong side. We are one of those lucky ones. The upside is that there are no sewer connections, so we don't have to try to connect thirty feet of sewer hose! As I write this, on Friday night, the park is filling up rapidly and I'm somewhat concerned about my exit strategy tomorrow morning. At the very least, I see a three-point turn with Nessie, and a tow car hookup out on the highway! Aw, well, what do you expect for almost $60 a night, Canadian!

Our purpose in driving south from the Calgary area was to visit a lady whose acquaintance we had made several years ago in Arizona. Karen lives in Pincher Creek, AB, some 40 miles west of Fort Macleod. We met Karen and Bob on a dusty road while we were all riding our bicycles, and got to talking. Turns out that their son lives with his family in the same little town in Cali that we do, so we had a connection right off the bat. Unfortunately, Bob has passed away, but we wanted to make use of  our time in the area to visit her. We joined her for dinner at Luigi's last night and spent several lovely hours catching up.

Story goes: During a small gold rush along an un-named creek in 1868, a group of miners lost a tool in the small creek. Since the tool would be used to trim the hooves of their horses, and so were valuable. In 1874, the Northwest Mounted Police came to southern Alberta, where one of them discovered the rusting tool in the creek. You get the picture...

Today, Friday, we visited the site of one of the best preserved Buffalo Jump sites in North America: Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump.

Artifacts discovered here indicate the use of this area for hunting buffalo back 9,000 years ago! The province of Alberta has constructed an Interpretive Centre that explains in detail exactly how the First Nations used the animals' instincts to harvest the meat and supplies necessary for survival.

The structure is well-concealed in the side of the bluff. Visitors enter on the ground floor, and are led to the sixth floor, where a short trail leads out to the top of the Jump.

 The cliffs that we see today are only about 33 feet high, due to the accumulation of fallen rocks, bones, and brush. During the times that this was used, the cliffs were twice that high. Exhibits onsite show that virtually every part of the buffalo was used, but larger bones began to pile up at the base of the cliff, softening the abrupt ledge.

From the top of the Jump, we could look east into Saskatchewan. Miles and miles of prairie stretch out, broken today only by lonely roads.

Inside the Centre, numerous exhibits tell of the purposes of the Jump, but a two story high representation of Buffalo at the edge is riveting. Knowing that in the next instant that their path is irreversible and absolute is awe inspiring.

How did this get it's name? Two versions.....

Several miles east of the Buffalo Jump lies a solitary granite stone about 10 feet in diameter. It is miles from the nearest mountain, and was a cause for wonder for centuries. Old Ones told of a Shaman laying down his cloak on the rock when still in the mountains and taking a nap upon it. When he awoke and walked away, the rock followed him. For miles the rock followed the Shaman, until he could stand it no more. He called upon his friends the Buffalo to stop the rock, but they could not. He called upon his friends the coyote and the fox to stop the rocks movement, but they could not. Then he called upon his friends the Bats, who by flying headlong into the rock, stopped its progress. Unfortunately, the bats smashed in their heads, giving the name to the area.

Or....

A young boy wanted to experience the thrill of the Buffalo Jump harvest from a different perspective. Climbing up the cliff face, he took cover under a small ledge while the Buffalo fell over him. So many Buffalo were harvested that the bodies piled up and covered the young boy. As the processing of the meat took place, he was discovered with his head smashed in.

Take you pick.

Aside from a few fences and the occasional sound of a car, you can imagine this area thousands of years ago, with the grasslands covered with tens of thousands of Buffalo.

After a quick two day stopover in Fort Macleod and Pincher Creek, we're out of here tomorrow! Stay tuned to see where we end up!