Medicine and Ritual

I had the pleasure of visiting friends in Redcliff and Medicine Hat. This visit allowed me to revisit places I used to go and hikes I used to take.

March 16, 2012, walked Echo Dale Farm and Park. Solo.

East of Medicine Hat on the south side of the South Saskatchewan River there is Echo Dale Park and Echo Dale Farm. I was involved in volunteering at the blacksmith shop in Echo Dale Farm so I decided to take a walk to see how things might have changed, if they change at all.
I started my walk around 1 pm and ended it around 3 pm. I walked directly to the Blacksmith shop. Since it is the off season the shop is closed but peering through the windows showed me that it is in use at times and it has not changed a whole lot. Next I walked down to the Bessemer engine which was dug into the bank of the South Saskatchewan River. The engine is a monstrous 2 cylinder stationary engine that was used to drive a pump for pumping water for irrigation. The remainder of my walk was east along the river mostly on a pathway of red cinders. Red cinder is plentiful in his area and is where the name Redcliff comes from. Then I returned on the asphalt paths along the river breaks, to the swimming area, now drained, and back to my vehicle. During my walk I saw a flicker but I know that on a summer walk it is not uncommon to see Prairie Rattle Snakes and Bull Snakes.

Find out more about Echo Dale Park at: http://www.medicinehat.ca/City%20Government/Departments/Parks%20and%20Outdoor%20Recreation/Parks%20System/Echo%20Dale%20Regional%20Park.asp

Total distance 6.22 km.
My time: 1 hr 43 min moving, 7 min stopped.
Max elevation 2562 ft., total ascent 510 ft.
March 17, 2012, walked NE Crescent Heights, Police Point Park, and Redcliff to River Valley Park and back, solo.

When I lived in Medicine Hat I would walk my son's dog so I managed to load an old Track File from one of those walks and I took a walk to find and follow that track. I started walking around 9:30 AM and finished around 10 AM. There has been considerable development in this area, since I walked it last, but the original asphalt path is still there and appears to be well used by people walking their dogs.

Total distance 2.7 km

Time: 34 min.

Then I met up with some friends and took a a walk in Police Point Park. We started around 10:30 AM and walked about 2 km in the park and then about another 3 km. back to their home. These friends have done a lot of photography in the Police Point Park so I liked hearing about their best sightings and their best photo shots. You might see some of these shots on their Website at: http://www.milnernaturescapes.ca/

Total distance: 5.07 km

Time: 1 hr 24 min moving, 8 min stopped.

That evening I had time to take a walk in Redcliff and to River Valley Park on the north side of the South Saskatchewan River and back, solo.

Total distance: 9.33 km,

Time: 2 hr 2 min moving, 7 min stopped.

Total ascent 431. Max elev. 2675ft

Total distance walked on this day 17.1

The total km. I walked, as shown on my GPS odometer, up to March 18, 2012 is 54.18 km.

On March 18, 2012 I drove to a couple of archeological features called Medicine Wheels. I drove to the first site but I decided to take a walk on the prairie again to get to the site of the Many Island Lake Medicine Wheel. There is no question why the indigenous people might have considered this a special or even a sacred place. I have no idea what rituals, if any, would have been preformed on these sites by the indigenous people of this area but I felt compelled to recognize the significance of this site, to those people, in my own way.

March 18, 2012, Walk to Many Islands Lake Medicine Wheel, solo.

Distance walked: 3.71 km

Walking time: 1 hour 4 min moving. 17 min stopped.

Total ascent 436 ft., max elev. 3199 ft.

Medicine does not insure good health and good health does not depend on medicine.