Alberta Destinations

Exploring Alberta's Aboriginal Legacy yields rewards

In the shadow of the sheer sandstone cliffs that hug the meandering Milk River in southern Alberta, a thousand mystical secrets are waiting to be told. Here, along the stark, wind-carved hoodoos, cactus and prairie grasslands, ancestors of today's Blackfoot Indians have left their mark.

Their mysterious legacy is a testament to Writing-On-Stone Provincial Park's great heritage — and offers a fleeting glimpse of a way of life long gone but not forgotten.Scattered over 50 sites atop the river valley, these ancient pictures and carvings act much like a sandstone photo album, depicting the passage of time for the people who lived, hunted and prayed among these hallowed hills. A victorious bison hunt. The spiritual journey of a young brave who embarks upon a vision quest. The life-altering arrival of the horse.

Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park is just one of many attractions that pay tribute to the rich culture of Alberta's first nations — a culture which fascinates people around the world. Here are some other story ideas about the province's aboriginal fabric:

Down on the reserve
Take part in traditional dancing and drumming, beadwork, hand games, a sweatlodge ceremony, teepee-raising and other experiences at Eagle's Nest Indian Village on the banks of the Oldman River in southern Alberta. You'll be welcomed to this unique camp with a pipe ceremony conducted by a Peigan elder, and then be invited to participate in a variety of cultural and outdoor programs depending on the length of your stay.

Chasing the great buffalo
As legend has it, curiosity had fatal consequences for a young Indian brave 2,000 years ago. The lad lost his life under the steep cliffs where herds of buffalo were herded to their deaths in a skilled hunting technique perfected here by the Plains Indians. The unfortunate youth was found crushed underneath the weight of one of the giant beasts, leading to the name Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump. UNESCO designated the jump a World Heritage Site for its historical significance and features an interpretive centre. It is also the site of a hugely popular annual weekend pow-wow and teepee village west of Fort Macleod.

Hit the pow-wow trail
The native music and dance that make up the pow-wow, with its feather bustles and headdresses, brilliantly-beaded buckskin and the thunder of drums, are awe-inspiring to locals and visitors alike. The popularity and significance of pow-wows among our first nations are rivalled only by the rodeos that are a big part of life in the West. Just about every town, city or reserve has a pow-wow or Indian Days celebration in the summer, including the famed teepee village at the
Calgary Stampede.

Preserving the past
In Calgary, the Glenbow Museum has earned high praise for its work with native cultures and is the largest museum in Western Canada. In Edmonton, the Provincial Museum of Alberta features the Syncrude Gallery of Aboriginal Culture, which will take you back 11,000 years and 500 generations. Historic Fort Macleod is home to the Fort Museum, on the site of the first North West Mounted Police (later RCMP) outpost in 1874. In the town of Banff, the Buffalo Nations Luxton Museum of the Plains Indian is dedicated to native heritage and culture.

Trading on dreams
The lore of Alberta's early fur trade still echoes across the province. Rocky Mountain House National Historic Site offers a hands-on exploration of the fur-trade era from 1799 to 1875. Trails, interpretive displays, audio-visual theatre and even the buffalo grazing in the front paddock are a true-to-life journey back to a unique era in the Canadian west. In Lethbridge you can visit Fort Whoop-Up, once home of the most notorious whiskey trading post in the west. Costumed guides re-enact its wooly past in daily skits and hands-on demos throughout the summer. Various weekends host mock battles, tug-of-wars against horses, log pole races and so on.

Think big
If you're on the way to the Saamis Teepee, you won't have to stop and ask for directions. At 20 storeys high, this towering landmark isn't hard to find in the city of Medicine Hat. Built for the 1988 Calgary Winter Olympics to commemorate the role of native people in the history of southern Alberta, the world's largest teepee stands watch over the recently-discovered Saamis Site Archaeological Dig.

For further information see www.travelalberta.com or contact Travel Alberta at 1-800-ALBERTA.