From the Great Falls Tribune Sept 6, 2015...
It’s number 73 on the Tribune’s Montana Bucket List: “Throw an atlatl, an 8,000-year-old weapon once used in Montana.” But so far, the weather has interfered with the annual Montana Atlatl Mammoth Hunt at First People’s Buffalo Jump State Park.
Rainy skies Saturday led to wet conditions on the field, and though Sunday’s wind gusts of up to 34 miles per hour likely brought drying benefits, it was not ideal for throwing spears or any other weapons.
“There was water in the field where we were going to set up the targets,” Park Ranger Clark Carlson-Thompson said of the weekend cancellations. “Hopefully the wind will make it a little less soupy and sloppy in the fields.”
The park will provide an update on its Facebook page, but Carlson-Thompson was optimistic the demonstrations would continue as planned from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday. The National Weather Service forecast for Monday calls for sunny skies with a high of 63 degrees and milder winds at 8 to 11 miles per hour.
The weather forecast was a disappointing surprise for park staff, who likened the rainy conditions Saturday to Memorial Day weekend rather than Labor Day weekend.
Despite the cancellation of the atlatl hunt demonstration, a handful of visitors still hit park trails, participated in guided walks or browsed the exhibits inside the visitor center building. Two young boys and their mother checked in for the final prairie dog walk of the season with Carlson-Thompson Sunday afternoon.
“I’ll probably have to shout at full volume the whole time,” he predicted.
The event is free for Montana residents, or otherwise included with $6 admission for out-of-state vehicles. For more information or to check park conditions call the visitor center at 406-866-2217
http://www.greatfallstribune.com/story/n...event/71825234/
