Where buffalos smashed their heads
OK so this post has a slightly gruesome theme.
Head-Smashed-In is one of the oldest and largest buffalo jump sites in the world. It is accorded World Heritage status so is a place of historic and cultural significance.
The name came from the practice by native tribes of driving herds of buffalo / bison along a stretch of high land (to the left in the photo below) where they would run over the edge and fall several metres to the ground below. Tribe members would be waiting to begin the massive task of dealing with all the dead and near-dead animals.
This happened for more than 5000 years until the bison had been hunted to near extinction.
The foothills of the Canadian Rockies merge here with the great plains.
This looks up to the jump site. The sign has a fairly graphic description for anyone keen enough to enlarge it!
A few hours passed and it was time to move on again, though not too far. To Claresholm first, a little town to the west, and half an hour beyond that, to the ranch where I would be staying.
tall tales 