Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump heritage site enjoys boost after shout out on ‘The Pitt’

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump was used for thousands of years by Indigenous people to channel bison herds and send the animals stampeding over a cliff to be killed and harvested.

A UNESCO World Heritage Site in Alberta is enjoying a recent uptick in interest spurred by a shout out on a popular American television show — and its head of marketing hopes that curiosity translates into a bustling summer season.

The site Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump was mentioned in a recent episode of the Golden Globe-winning TV medical drama The Pitt.

In it, Dr. Michael (Robby) Robinavitch, played by actor Noah Wyle, announces he’s going on sabbatical to the landmark in the foothills of the Canadian Rocky Mountains.

“I’ve never seen the badlands,” he says in the episode that aired Jan. 8.

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump is about 185 kilometres south of Calgary. It was used for thousands of years by Indigenous people to channel bison herds and send the animals stampeding over an 11-metre-high cliff to be killed and harvested.

The interpretive centre of cascading floors built into the sandstone cliff explores Blackfoot culture, local ecology, and archeological finds, and leads visitors to a cliff top trail.

Quinton Crow Shoe, who leads marketing at Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump, said staff are hearing some visitors say the show triggered their curiosity.

“As a result of that mention, they decided to take the trek off the beaten path,” he said in an interview.