It rained again last night but was clearing to the west, so we droves out to Devils Tower National Monument in Wyoming. It was a two-hour drive over some very pretty country. As we pulled into the NM, the tower loomed over us. It is an incredible sight. The tower is over 60million years old. It is formed from igneous rock (magma) that was pushed up and cooled. There are different theories of how it was formed with no firm consensus. We arrived in time for the 10am ranger led tour around the base of the formation. This tour was not as Jr. Ranger oriented and the Ranger did a nice job of keeping everyone moving. The trail was paved all the way but was fairly steep in places. There were numerous climbers on the tower either working their way up or having already made it to the top, were roping down. Devils Tower was the first National Monument designated by President Roosevelt 1in 1906 following passage of the Antiquities Act. The visitor center was small and did not have much in the way of exhibits. The parking was limited also, but we arrived early enough to get a spot in the overflow parking. Just outside the gate to the NM there is a KOA camp ground with RV spots. Something to keep in mind if we come back. It would have been nice to be able to stay until sunset to see the colors on the tower. Unfortunately we could not stay longer since we needed to get back to the Wanderer so we could let Etta out.
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