Devils Tower

 We said goodbye to Buffalo and headed out at 10 am.  It was hard for some to leave this nice place...the green grass....the excitement of the neighborhood....

Well, at least one of them was not bored with being in Buffalo...as for Bubba, I think he is still enjoying his short haircut!

And this place is so cool....they remind you about your step, about your antenna, and they want to be darn sure that your wife is on board with you when you leave!   Yes, Marcia is on board....let's head down the trail....

Now Wyoming has some real pretty places to it...but for the most part, it looks like this....

Take away the Tetons, Yellowstone, Bighorn Mountains and Devils Tower/Little Missouri Buttes and all you have in Wyoming is the pictures above.  It is like that all the way along I-80, I-90, I-25 except for those views that include the Bighorn Mountains.  

We drove along I-90, stopped at Gillette for food (Walmart) and fuel, and then turned on highway 14/16, then again on highway 24.  Around a few corners, and there it is...right in front of us....as if it came from nowhere...

I have seen Devils Tower before, and it was amazing then, and it is amazing now.  Here are a few views of it...

Above is a view which is close from our camp ground.

Ok, what's with this white ribbon formed into a sign of infinity?   It was not here last time I was here?  You can see it in the above picture in the foreground below the Tower.  Below you can see the Tower through it.  Apparently it is the Wind Circle/Sacred Circle of Smoke, symbolizing the Indians sacred thoughts about the Tower.  Now it was not built by an Indian, it was not asked for by the Indian, it really was the idea and creation of one Junkyu Muto, a internationally renowned Japanese artist (who lives in Italy), and it was third in a series of seven “peace sculptures” planned for significant sites around the world.  Two other peace sculptures have already been erected – one at the Vatican in 2000, and the other at Buddha Gaya, India.  From what I can tell, there has been no fourth sculpture yet.  It is amazing, however, how the park service twisted this creation into an "Indian" exhibit....that's our Government for you.

The best view of the Tower (below), without having to do a hike, is from the Visitor's Center Parking Lot.  And with temps over 100 degrees today, I was sure glad that the GoGo would not have made it up the hill for any hike.   We both enjoyed the Visitor's Center too.

 On our way back to camp, we got this other view below.  The Tower is not as wide in this view.

Devils Tower was the first declared United States National Monument, established on September 24, 1906, by President Theodore Roosevelt.  It is thought (by man) to be rock formed from a molten magma about 50 million years ago, and as it cooled it contracted and fractured into columns.  As far as we are concerned, the almighty is so powerful he could have created it as it is with just a thought...or a snap of his fingers.  Either way, it is a wonderful site.

I love red rocks...reminds me of areas in Utah and Arizona.  Love the contrast to the blue sky...and the sky is really blue today, not much signs of the smoke from fires that we had to deal with before.

And there are a whole lot of Prairie Dogs around here.  Skruffy and Bubba have not seen them yet...and I hope that they don't see them.  The Prairie Dog Town can be seen right out the window of the motor home  where we are camped at...but they don't seem to be down by us.

 We are staying right here at the National Monument.  They have an area with about 50 camping sites.  Although their website says that they only handle up to 35 foot RVs, this is not true...we have plenty of space and space for the car too.  Now there is nothing fancy about this place other than the price.....no water, no electric, WiFi is coming from a distant RV park which is running an open network.  I don't have cell service, Marcia does with Verizon, yet she also has 3G with AT&T...go figure.  Oh, and that fancy price?  Only $6 since we have the senior park pass...otherwise it would be a whole $12!

And I will close with a look around the Devils Tower Campground....

These two views (above and below) are out the right side (door side) of the motor home.  In the picture above, just above the green grass is an area of brown dirt and prairie grass...that is the home to the many prairie dogs.

 The picture below is what we see out towards the front left.

And these two pictures (above and below) is the view out the other side of the motor home.  As you can see....lots of space, few neighbors, and it should be a peaceful night.

 And here you can see where we are parked for the night, with the Tower in the distance.

Tomorrow....headed for the Black Hills of South Dakota.