Devils Tower - Wyoming

Based on a recommendation from a member of Helen’s ukulele group, we made a short detour off I-90 just as we entered Wyoming.  Our destination was Devils Tower.

Devils Tower Rising
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Devils Tower is a unique geological formation that appears to just rise from the ground.  It stands 867 feet tall.  For comparison, the St. Louis Arch is 630 feet high.  Geologists have argued over the forces that gave rise to this formation, offering that it may a volcanic plug remnant or a laccolith remnant as well as other theories we don’t fully understand.

However, we found one explanation that seems the most plausible of all.  This explanation comes from Native American lore:

The Kiowa were camping up north in bear country.  One day seven sisters were quite a distance from

Legend of Tower Rock

the village when they were chased by bears.  The girls ran, but the bears kept getting closer.  To escape, the girls jumped on a low rock and prayed to the rock, “Rock, take piety on us, rock save us.”  The rock heard the girls’ cry for help and began to push itself higher and higher.  The bears rushed to the rising rock and leapt upwards only to break their claws as they cut deep grooves into the sides of the rock. The girls were lifted to the heavens and turned into stars known as the Seven Sisters, or Pleiades. 

Not only is the origin of the rock formation a point of controversy, so is its name.

Devils Tower
First US National Monument

Lore has it that the name was a misinterpretation of the local name as “Bad God’s Tower.”  The name Devil’s Tower was derived with the apostrophe later being dropped to conform to geographic naming standards.  Native Americas, however, continue to refer to the rock formation as “Bear’s House” or “Bear’s Lodge.” Attempts to rename the site have been blocked in the US Congress.

The US Congress was involved because President Theodore Roosevelt declared the site the first national monument in 1906.

Devils Tower or Bear’s House has seen other controversies, such as the 1941 parachutist who successfully landed on the approximately one-acre summit.  With war raging in Europe, the jumper wanted to demonstrate that jumpers could land on a small, designated target.  Unfortunately, his 1,000-foot rope dropped from the same plane missed. He was stranded for several days until a climbing expedition reached him.

Helen with Devils Tower
at Picnic Table

We enjoyed the view from our picnic table in a nearby park.  Part of our travel is to have an unhurried lunch.  Lunch gives our dog Nando time to get a drink, romp and run for a bit, then relax next to us.  Overall, this is a pleasant way to live.