Modern Montana Tipi (or tepee, teepee)

This Montana tipi (or tepee)is used for group meditation. It is located on a private 80-acre sanctuary in northwestern Montana.(Click on photo to open large size view.)If you attend any of the Drum Brothers Retreats, this may be familiar to you. We took the shot during our retreat, but on such a smoke-filled day during wildfire season that no outdoor campfires were allowed. We missed out on a campfire in the tipi, which I think would have been awesome. It is hard to tell from the photo, but the tipi is about 20 feet in diameter at the base, so plenty of room for lots of "meditators."

(Click on photos to open large size view.)

Ulm Pishkun (or Pishkin)

The ULM PISHKUN is an historic "Buffalo kill site" used by Native Americans for 2000 years. It is located about ten miles outside of Great Falls, Montana (USA). Pishkuns are also commonly called "buffalo jumps." At one time, over 300 such "buffalo jumps" are believed to have been in use in Montana alone.


The photo above shows re-creations of native shelters used during that era (and for hundreds of years afterward as well.) The shelters would be covered by a buffalo hides. The more accurate term, BISON, is used today, to distinguish this species of buffalo from others around the world.

The word, "pishkun" is a Blackfoot word that roughly translates into "deep blood kettle."

What you "would" see from the top of the ULM PISHKUN site is the steep cliff where the bison were stampeded over the edge to fall to their deaths below. Hunters would also be stationed below the cliff to finish off the injured animals.

No part of the bison was wasted. Meat, hide, bones, sinew, and skull were all utilized in the Native American subsistence and survival lifestyle.

Here is a link to an informative article on "Buffalo Jumps."(Click on photo to open large size view.)

Bitterroot Mountain Range in Montana

Here is the photo of the Bitterroot Mountain range without the Valentine window from the previous post.
(Click on photo to open large size view.)

Valentine Window on the Bitterroot Range

Sunday Morning. Saint Valentine's Day and such a beautiful day it was. The Bitterroot Mountain range of southwestern Montana is in the background.
(Click on photo to open large size view.)

Bitterroot River with Prism Effect

I submitted this little shot to a coffee bean company and they sent me a free pound of ground coffee that was named after Montana rivers and streams.

This is the only size of this photo that I could find. I need to be more conscientious about naming photos. Somewhere on my computer is the full-size photo of this, but probably named DSC00wwswxx. or P10042383.jpg or some such thing.

Big Sky Montana Clouds

(Click on photo to open large size view.)
(Click on photo to open large size view.)

Welcome to Blackfeet Indian Reservation

This wonderful sculpture welcomes travelers to the Blackfeet Indian Reservation located in northern Montana, on the eastern boundary of Glacier National Park.
(Click on photo to open large size view.)