Writing on Stone

Terry and I use the excuse of looking for “World’s biggest statues” to explore new roads and areas as we drive.

We passed a sign that said “Writing on Stone” and we had previously heard about this historical area, so we back tracked about 100 miles after our latest silly photo to check it out. We had the time!

Writing on Stone is amazing!

Much like Horseshoe Canyon and Red Rock Coulee, one has absolutely no clue what awaits their eyes after travelling down prairie roads for hours and hours.

We stopped first at the information centre which is beautiful . We looked around there for a bit and found out that I would not be able to make it down to the river because of my mobility issues. There were about 60 stairs to get down there and then I would have to try and walk back up!

Even when you are approaching the cliff, you don’t think you will see what you come to actually see. The breadth of the stone hoodoos is miles long and the stone ‘statues’ are weirdly unique and mesmerizing.

I wish I could capture how massive this area is with a photo. I cannot. Terry is actually in that third photo!

The “Writing on Stone'“ refers to the sacred writings of the Blackfoot nation ( and other indigenous groups) that are carved into the rocks down near the water. There are carvings of battles, the spirit world, family life, animals, flora and fauna too.

Terry kindly climbed down the cliff with my camera so he could try and capture some of the writings. They are hard to see as well and they are now protected by a roped off area because of vandalization.

If you look at the Milk River shot above and then the river photo in the former panel , you can see how far down Terry climbed. The sign above is partially depicted in the following panel next to it.

Writing on Stone is definitely worth the drive….and so are the World’s Biggest Pinto Bean and Corn Stalk!

I just had to add this image from Parks Canada so you could get more of an idea of the scale of this place