For the second time in as many days I suppressed my instinct to skip a tourist attraction, in this case Devil’s Tower, in Wyoming. Although the very first of all our National Monuments, it’s just a big rock, why drive 80 miles through the middle of nowhere to see yet another huge rock?
“Don’t miss it,” a fellow told me when I was at Jewel Cave. “A lot of these attractions are questionable. That one is not.”
Ok.
North and West out of Deadwood I went, across country with seemingly limitless vistas. At first it mesmerizes one not accustomed to it. Then it makes you edgy, then it hypnotizes you. I crank up the volume on any radio station I can receive.
Eventually the destination arises out of the plains in front of you. You start to get the feeling that this is more than just a big rock. While still in the haze of the distance it occupies a considerable portion of the field of view.
I was still miles away from it when I took this shot with a 200mm lens.
After entering the park itself, I began hiking the trail around the base of it. Like so many things out here I struggle to accurately capture the largeness of things. From the bottom of the boulder field, which may not be entered except by climbers, I took this shot with a wide angle lens, which distorts things but is at least able to capture the field. Take special note of the individual vertical cracks; try to imagine their width:
How wide across do the individual columns appear to be?
How about now?
Devil’s Tower is considered sacred among the Northern Plains Indians. Hanging in trees around the base of it are colorful prayer cloths, not unlike Tibetan prayer shawls. As I hiked around the base I heard the mournful sounds of a flute arising from somewhere up in the boulder field. It could have been a college kid from New York City or an elderly Native American at prayer; in any case it greatly added to the overall emotion of the place.
I spent quite a bit of time here. There is an effect the largeness of the place has on you. Oddly, for the first time in days I was able to get a cellphone reception, so I took a picture with my phone and sent it to friends. An instinct to connect and share arose in me.
I felt very glad this place is held in respect. Respect leads to conservation.