After my hike on the Amisk Trail, I headed further north in Whiteshell. My next destination was the famous Bannock Point Petroforms.
I had seen something marked as "Ojibwe Mosaics" on my atlas of Manitoba and so at one point had done a little bit of research to figure out what they were. It turns out they are piles of stoned that are shaped into effigies, animals and other figures. Petroform is just another name for mosaic.
I arrived at the parking lot a bit surprised to find it nearly full. I hadn't anticipated the site being this popular. As it turns out, most of those parked and visiting the site weren't curious people like me, but mostly First Nations folks who were seemingly making a religious pilgrimage to the site. This made my visit seem a little bit awkward, but I felt I was able to act respectfully and observe the petroforms while not infringing on the others' at the site.
Among the shapes I found outlined in stone were a few turtles,
a snake
and some other shapes whose meaning is unknown to me.
Some of the forms appeared very old with moss growing alongside the rocks, while others appeared relatively new. A very interesting place. Apparently, there are other sites like it in the local area, but the Bannock Point Petroforms are the most accessible.
No comments:
Post a Comment