Thirty years after “aliens” arrived, Devils Tower National Monument is as fascinating and otherworldly as ever.
By Denise Seith
April 2008
Just about anyone who has seen the 1977 science fiction film Close Encounters of the Third Kind will think about it when they first see Devils Tower, located in northeastern Wyoming. But after you park your motorhome in the lot, thoughts of alien spaceships fade to black. The distinctive 1,267-foot monolith and surrounding scenic countryside easily capture your attention without any help from Hollywood. If you’re short on time, that’s okay. The highlights are covered in a condensed area, so you’ll still get a full experience even if you can’t extend your stay in the campground.
Located where the pine forests of the Black Hills meet the rolling prairie grasslands and meandering Belle Fourche River, the monument’s proper name actually is Devils Tower, not Devil’s Tower (it’s said that a clerical error on early governmental paperwork resulted in the missing apostrophe). The name was derived from American Indians, who referred to it as “the bad god’s tower.” Believing that “the devil’s tower” was a better English translation, U.S. Army Colonel Richard Dodge recorded it as such in his journal and official documents while escorting a scientific team into the Black Hills region in 1875.
Long before white men wandered into the West, Northern Plains Indian tribes called their sacred worship site Mateo Teepee (Bear Lodge). Some Indian tribes prefer that the tower and the region still be called Bear Lodge, which is consistent with the legend of its creation. According to one story, a giant bear tried to attack seven girls while they were playing in the area. The girls climbed onto a rock and begged the Great Spirit for rescue from the bear. The rock then rose upward, carrying the girls to safety while the bear clawed at the sides of the rock, leaving the hundreds of deep vertical furrows visitors see today.
Hollywood might lead us to believe that Devils Tower was created as a landing platform for extraterrestrials, but geologists have more plausible theories. Some think it is an eroded remnant of a laccolith, a mass of igneous rock that pushed through sedimentary rock but did not actually reach the surface, and instead produced a rounded bulge. Over the years, as erosion occurred, the rock was revealed. Other scientists speculate it might be the neck of a small volcano, but that does not ring true, considering there are none in the area. Actually, no one has a definite answer as to how Devils Tower was formed, but perhaps it’s the mystery that makes the place even more interesting.
Devils Tower continues to be a sacred site for many American Indian tribes today. Culturally significant worship ceremonies are held there during the month of June, but at any time of year you’ll probably notice prayer bundles (tobacco, sage, or small personal items wrapped in cloth and beads) tied onto branches of nearby pine trees. Although it’s not mandatory, the National Park Service has asked that climbers voluntarily refrain from climbing the tower in June out of respect for the rituals that take place during that time. Also, some climbing routes are intermittently closed between March and July because of nesting prairie falcons.
The tower is worthy of a close-up view. Several trails take hikers to the base of this unusual rock formation (maps are available at the visitors center). For a really close encounter, 5,000 or so hard-core climbers scale its challenging walls each summer and achieve a much loftier perspective.
Wondering what it’s like at the top? Well, first, the tower is not hollow. The peak is covered in sagebrush and grass and provides an all-encompassing panorama.
In 1893 William Rogers made the first recorded ascent of Devils Tower. Back then, Rogers used a ladder, and two years later his wife followed suit and became the first woman on record to climb to the summit. For decades, all successive climbers used that same ladder (remnants of it on the east side of the tower are still visible through binoculars), but in 1937 Fritz Weissner and three others from New York City used their free-climbing skills to reach the peak. Those mountaineers made use of naturally occurring ledges, cracks, and outcroppings to inch their way to the top, just as modern climbers do.
If you’d rather not get roped into anything yourself, just take binoculars along on the paved 1.3-mile loop Tower Trail and live a little vicariously. The mostly shaded, peaceful trail encircles the base of the tower and provides good views of climbers clinging precipitously to the rock face. Interpretive exhibits and benches along the way make this a most popular walk.
Those who like to see small wildlife won’t be disappointed. A large colony of lively black-tailed prairie dogs can be viewed right from the main road. Just pull off to the side and watch hundreds of cute critters scamper about. Their burrows are an elaborate network of interconnecting tunnels with multiple entrance holes, so they literally pop up all over the place. Prairie dogs were named for their bark-like calls, which sound more like high-pitched yips. They’re actually rodents closely related to ground squirrels and chipmunks. It’s entertaining to watch their antics.
Wild turkeys, deer, rabbits, many species of birds, and porcupines also inhabit the park acreage around Devils Tower. Sorry, though, no spaceships have been spotted since Steven Spielberg and his film crew cleared out 30 years ago.
Devils Tower also has made history outside of the movies. In September 1906, President Theodore Roosevelt established the rock formation and surrounding 1,347 acres as the United States’ very first national monument. The major difference between a national park and a national monument is that a national park encompasses a large land or water area that contains a variety of resources, whereas a national monument is smaller and usually preserves just one significant resource. Although it lacks national park status, Devils Tower National Monument is no less impressive and interesting, as any of its 400,000 annual visitors will tell you. But don’t take their word for it. Plan your own close encounter with the remarkable topography, history, geology, and legends of northeastern Wyoming’s most conspicuous landmark.
If You Go
Devils Tower National Monument is near Interstate 90 in the northeast corner of Wyoming, not far from the popular tourist towns of Deadwood and Lead, South Dakota. From I-90, take the Sundance or Moorcroft exits and travel north to State Route 24.
The monument is open year-round, but the visitors center, campground, and picnic area are open only from April through November, weather permitting. Confirm exact times and dates before you visit. An entrance fee of $10 (good for 7 days) is charged; or, use your America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass.
The campground at this national monument has 50 sites and can accommodate RVs up to 35 feet at most sites (all are pull-throughs). Flush toilets and water are available, but there are no hookups. Spaces fill on a first-come, first-served basis; no reservations are taken.
For more information, contact:
Devils Tower National Monument
P.O. Box 10
Devils Tower, WY 82714-0010
(307) 467-5283
www.nps.gov/deto