Devil's Tower

I took it easy Wednesday morning and explored a few more viewpoints in Custer State Park before heading north to Deadwood. My plan was just to stop for lunch, but as it turned out, I walked into Saloon 10 just in time to see the reenactment of the day Wild Bill Hickok was shot in the saloon while holding aces and eights (dead man’s hand). After lunch I got back in my car and headed west with my goal being Devil’s Tower National Monument in northeastern Wyoming.

The drive towards the monument was fairly uninteresting with the flat landscape dominating the area, but when Devil’s Tower comes into view, it takes your breath away. The tower rises up out of nothing and forces your eye to focus on it above all else. I pitched camp, did a little laundry, and then made my way to the tower for sunset. Watching the sun set over the plains of South Dakota while illuminating this massive tower really made me think how insignificant we all are and how easily nature can dominate mankind. Despite all of the technology and advencements we have made, we are still at the mercy of Mother Nature. After the sun set I returned to my campgrounds where they were showing Steven Spielberg’s "Encounters of the Third Kind" that was filmed at the tower.