Today we’re visiting Devil’s Tower National Monument. As I said in my latest rant, we did not have to go online and pay a fee to get in. I’ll never understand the rationale of the federal government if I live to be a hundred.
The tower stands almost 1000 feet from its base to summit, rising from a general sandstone plateau in northeast Wyoming. A little while back, oh some 60 million years, a magma upwelling took place and pushed up through the sandstone to form the core of the tower, so that as the sandstone wore away, the tower stood proud.
An Indian legend explains the striations on the sides, to the effect that the people took refuge on the top of the tower while a massive bear attempted to claw its way up to them. The Lakota name for the formation is Bear Lodge, from that legend.
In 1978, the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind was filmed here and centered around the tower. That’s mostly what the tower became famous for in the modern era. Our campground shows the movie nightly so we’ll certainly see that while we’re here. Susanne has never seen it! Her list of geek movies that she’s seen is sadly very short. 😞
Susy and I hiked our way all the way around it, about 3 miles with some pretty good ups and downs along the way.
One of my favorite spots here is the prairie dog town. I love watching those little rodents. 🤪
They chirp a warning about us as we walk past, and scurry in and out of their holes. I’d take one home and start a dog town in my back yard if I could catch one. 😁
Mike and Susy's Spirit of Discovery 
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