Jun 10, 2010
The further west we get, the better the weather. Gorgeous drive through undulating, uneven, cow-dotted hills, verdant landscapes. Not many towns, few billboards, and almost no other cars on the road.
Devils Tower appears over the horizon and remains in sight for the next 20 miles. It is enormous and we couldn’t keep our eyes off of it. Stopped several times to get pictures and try to better comprehend what we’re looking at. Arrived at Devil’s Tower National Monument (the first nat'l monument to be named, in 1906) about 6:30 or 7:00. $10 entrance fee and a sign telling us that in June the voluntary no-climb in effect. Summer solstice brings on lots of mystics and Native American ceremonies; govt asks people to avoid climbing the Tower out of respect. According to the attendant in the guard gate, they get 85 percent compliance. Laura observes: 15 percent assholes.
Even staring up at Devils T, walking around the 1.5 mile base, it still remained a bit illusive. The size of the tower (the top of it is the size of a football field), the starkness of the columns, the rocks piled at the base of the structure, all completely unfamiliar. And awe inspiring. Almost like a huge structure exploded out of the earth, scattering boulders everywhere.
If the Badlands stood out for their brittle but expansive majesty, and Rushmore for its man-over-nature industry, the sheer power of Devils Tower is what I’ll remember. Hard to describe the enormity of structure itself or the somewhat mystical quality it conveys. No surprise to see prayer flags hung on surrounding trees.
Sunny weather, light traffic at the park made for a quiet, almost solemn initial visit. Plan to hike around the surrounding grounds tomorrow morning.
Sun setting as we head to Hulett, the nearest town, about 15 miles away. Check in and walk to the main street for a late dinner. Nothing open at 9:30, but people still sitting in town pizza joint. Poke my head in and woman says oven off but agrees to make us sandwiches. A huge, Devils Tower-sized meatball sandwich for me and a salad for LVL. Quick, a bit awkward as they close up shop, but ultimately really nice. The manager talked us in to 1.5 slices of freshly made lemon meringue pie and some banana bread. We are pigs.
Of course, it was pouring by the time we finished. A near sprint back to the hotel to end the night.
*No apostrophe used on account of a geographic naming convention, according to Wiki.
I was pretty psyched to see any parts of Wyoming that aren't Cheyenne.
Josh wanted to stay here until I informed him this wasn't THAT Sundance.
There it is. Devils Tower in the distance.
Yet there's still time to get out of the car for a little stretch.
And a quick round with our modern version of hackey sack.
Okay, let's not get so dramatic.
Don't worry. We got shots of DT that weren't self-portraits.
We saw a number of prayer offerings. And we didn't disturb a one.
It's pretty awesome. Like, really awesome.
Hmm. Not quite seeing what you're saying we should see.
Yeah, still not seeing it. But we're trying really hard.
Right there, in the middle-ish rightish of the pic, is what the viewfinders pointed to. You don't see the primitive ladder either, do you?
Nose itching. For those who don't know, I don't have the most cartilage.
See?! Mushy nose.
Oy. Still itching.
Don't know what Josh did with the camera settings, but this pic is seconds after the previous three. But most importantly, nose is still itching.
Log
Stump with cryptic message.
Feeling pretty wee next to that sucker.
Now I really need to see Close Encounters of the Third Kind. I know. Embarrassing, really.
Thanks, Charlie T's lady for staying open late to feed us. You were a carnivore's dream and not too bad for a desperate veghead.
Devoured the meatball sub in about 2.7 minutes flat. I'm sure Josh just ate so quickly so they could close up shop.
It might just be iceberg and some other basics, but there is a boatload of each on that plate.
Fine. Twist our arms. We'll take your homemade pie if you really want us to.
Become our 
Follow 
Check out the 
Is there offensive content on this page? 
CommentsAdd