27 Aug - Devil's Tower

27 Aug
We headed west from Rapid City on I-90 this morning back into Wyoming and then north to Devil's Tower.  In 1906 Theodore Roosevelt proclaimed Devil's Tower our Nation's first National Monument.  Sp Wyoming has the first National Monument and the first National Park (Yellowstone).

50 million years ago molten magma was forced into sedimentary rock above it and cooled underground.  As it cooled it contracted and it fractured into columns.  Over millions of years erosion exposed the tower.  There is over 1.5 acres on top of the tower and it stands 1280 feet above the river below.

As we approached the tower today, it was visible for miles.

Devil's Tower just to the right of the sign

From the post office near the park entrance

Devils Tower has become a mecca for rock climbers.  There are over 200 different climbing routes.

As we drove the road approaching the tower we passed a huge prairie dog town with hundreds of prairie dogs our sunning themselves.  The land looks like a swiss cheese, full of holes that mark the prairie dog's lair.

We parked near the visitor center and Doreen went inside while I watched Liberty.  This is the view from the visitor center:

This is the park layout.  There are some paved trails and then other trails that require a permit to travel as they are used by the rock climbers.  If you are going to climb you must register at the visitor center also.

<Venting alert>:  We proceeded up the paved trail and captured several pictured before we were approached by one of the rangers.  The literature provided by the National Park Service clearly states that dogs must be kept on leashes, which Liberty was; must be cleaned up after by the owner, etc - standard practices.  Not only was she on a leash, she was being carried by Doreen.  The ranger said we could go no further and needed to get off the trail with Liberty, which we did.  She made some comment about the dog's scent but I did not understand what she was referring.  If they are going to prohibit dogs, even hand-carried ones, then they need to state that in their documentation.  By doing so they are really putting a huge limitation on tourists that are traveling with their pets.  Either you don't visit the venue, or you do so and leave the pet in the vehicle, which is dangerous as they could easily overheat.   Needless to say I was smoldering at this point as we had drived over two hours to get here, and now we are leaving.  Well, here are a few more pictures:

From the trail

Zoomed in to find the climbers - we found two

More climbers

Another from the trail

Attempted selfie

 

Lighting was better from this angle, as we were departing the park

We stopped at a rest area and had a picnic lunch Doreen had packed.  Then we headed back to the Famcamp.  We were just one exit west of our exit when an old car threw a rock and it badly chipped our windshield.  My bad mood turned worse and I was ready for this day to end.  We cooked dutch oven pizza using the lump charcoal I had purchased as the beginning of the summer (and dislike) and I proceeded to burn the pizza.

That's it for tonight.  Tomorrow we make preparations to depart Ellsworth Air Force Base on Tuesday morning and head to Vermilion State Park campground SW of Sioux Falls SD where we will camp for two nights.