Our first sight in Wyoming was a hulking monolith that rose straight out of the hilly farmland in the northeastern corner of the state. Devil's Tower is the remnant of an ancient volcano. The magma core of the volcano hardened and the rest of the volcano eroded away entirely around it. The result is an 800-foot tall near-vertical block of solid rock. Devil's Tower is actually made up of a collections of cylindrical stalks of hardened lava, bound together as if they were a sheaf of wheat. The formation is a challenge for rock climbers on par with El Capitan. It is also a sacred place for Native Americans.While the national monument was used as the setting for the climax of Close Encounters of the Third Kind, there were no little green men running around on the morning of my visit. The only close encounters I experienced were with wildlife. I was able to get up close and personal with a rabbit, a family of deer, and a bunch of prairie dogs.
For my Devil's Tower photo album, click here.
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