In early June, we joined the legions that have been entranced by the giant rock. We settled into a campsite with a view of the tower, and for two days hiked and explored the pillar from every angle.
Arriving at Devils Tower National Monument
Devils Tower surrounded by a rubble field of stone
Composed of giant hexagonal columns that are the tallest (more than 600 feet) and widest (up to 20 feet) in the world, Devils Tower is a beautiful natural geometric sculpture. Every side of the tower shows a different face, and the forces of nature continue to sculpt and change the rock.
A wonderful view of Devils Tower from the Red Beds Trail
Geologists think the tower was formed from molten magma forced into sedimentary rock underground almost 50 million years ago. As the magma cooled, it fractured into hexagonal columns. Over millions of years, the soft sedimentary deposits eroded, and bit by bit, the pillar was revealed.
The Plains Indians tell a different story of how the tower came to be. Tribal legends vary slightly, but most stories involve a giant bear that clawed gashes into the rock. The Kiowa tale is my favorite:
While playing near a stream, seven young girls were chased by bears. The girls scrambled to the top of a low rock, praying to the Great Spirit to save them. Hearing their prayers, the Great Spirit raised the rock to the heavens, and the bears tumbled backward, clawing the sides of the tower as they fell. To ensure their safety, the Great Spirit placed the girls into the sky, where they were turned into stars and became the constellation we call the Pleiades. In winter, the seven stars can be seen directly above the rock.
For thousands of years, the tower has been spiritually significant to the tribes of the Great Plains. They leave colorful prayer cloths tied to trees circling the base of the monolith, and in June, hold sacred ceremonies at the tower. While we were there, we watched tipis being raised in the campground for a ceremonial gathering.
Tipis at the Belle Fourche River Campground
Prayer flags on the Tower Trail
About the name…it drives my editor (that’s me) crazy that there’s no apostrophe in Devils Tower. But that’s how the name was originally recorded, and so it stays, a glaring grammatical error. More of an issue, though, is that the sacred monolith was named Devils Tower at all. For centuries, the Plains Indians have called the tower Bear’s Lodge, or Bear’s Tipi. The name Devils Tower was the result of a white man’s careless translation of the Indian name. The tribes object to the connotation of evil associated with a place they hold sacred, but their attempts to have the tower renamed have been thus far unsuccessful.
More than two dozen tribes consider the tower to be a holy place. According to Lakota legend, this is where White Buffalo Calf Woman presented the first sacred ceremonial pipe to the Lakota people. To honor the spiritual significance of the tower, Japanese artist Junkyu Moto created the Circle of Sacred Smoke. The sculpture represents a puff of smoke from a ceremonial pipe and perfectly frames the tower.
Circle of Sacred Smoke
As for the connection to Teddy Roosevelt and Steven Spielberg, in 1906 President Roosevelt named the tower as the first national monument in the U.S. And in the sci-fi cult classic Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Spielberg chose Devils Tower as the site where aliens land and make contact with humans. (Should you need a refresher on the movie, it plays every night at the amphitheater just outside of the monument at the KOA.)
We hiked most of the trails at Devils Tower, enjoying the changing face of the pillar from every direction. The Tower Trail is undeniably the most popular—it’s an easy 1.3-mile path around the base of the tower with lots of people making the trek. But by striking off onto the intersecting trails, we found plenty of solitude. We especially enjoyed the Red Beds Trail, a 2.8-mile loop that offers beautiful views of the tower and the surrounding Belle Fourche River valley.
On the Tower Trail
The Red Beds Trail
Views from the Red Beds Trail
Ah, so this is why it’s called the Red Beds Trail!
Varied terrain on the trail
We also hiked from the campground to the monument on the South Side Trail, which travels through a prairie dog town. As we tried to figure out what we thought was a mystery bird with a repetitive chirping call, we finally realized we were hearing prairie dogs talking to each other. In early June, baby prairie dogs are abundant.
A rotund prairie dog
An adorable baby prairie dog
Spectacular view from our campsite
About the campground
If you can do without electricity or water hookups, Belle Fourche River Campground is a delightful place to stay. Located within the monument, the sites are spacious and set in a grove of cottonwood trees. Many have beautiful views of the tower. All sites are first-come, first-served, with water faucets for filling tanks, restrooms with no showers, no dump station, and iffy Verizon. Hiking to the monument from the campground is wonderful. We loved our peaceful stay.
Always wish I was your guardian, or driver, or baggage handler, or just with you guys…..
Enjoy all your locations and photos you have taken…..
Hope you never go home! Ha Ha Ha
LOL!! As much as we love home, I suspect it’s going to be a long time before we settle down again. There are so many more places we want to see, and adventures ahead. Thanks for coming along for the journey, Bob. Let us know if you want to meet up somewhere for a photography expedition! :-)
So maybe there are several devils at the tower. Couldn’t resist. Gorgeous photos of a magical place we loved when visiting in 2012
Glad you enjoyed the photos, Sue. Devils Tower really does feel like a sacred place. You are so funny about the name…I’ve spent so many years in the writing/editing biz that grammatical stuff can drive me crazy. Especially my own errors, haha!!
This is the such an awesome place. The Tower formation is unbelievable. We were just in awe as we hiked around it. The Red Beds Trail was wonderful. We saw a couple deer along the way. Your photo of the prairie dog surround by the little orange flowers is a real keeper. Isn’t the Smoke Circle with Devil’s Tower in the middle just perfect! You certainly had the best campsite.
Pam, we felt that same sense of awe as we circled the tower. We enjoyed the Tower Trail, but we really appreciated the peace and solitude of the Red Beds Trail—as well as the spectacular views! We loved being in the campground with a perfect view of the tower and in walking distance to the trails. I think that was the chubbiest prairie dog I’ve ever seen. :-)
I loved this….so interesting. As we travel, I have found the history of Native Americans fascinating and what the white man did equally upsetting.
Debbie, we feel the same. Unfortunately, there are those who continue to be culturally insensitive. We saw a few people climbing the tower while we were there in June. That’s the one month that the park asks people to voluntarily refrain from climbing in respect for the tribal sacred celebrations. I asked the park rangers why they don’t make it a mandatory closure, but they didn’t have an answer.
I’m thinking maybe the same people who named ‘Devils Tower’ in North Dakota also named ‘Henrys Lake’ in Idaho…and those people were put on this earth to annoy people like you and me. :) Certainly a one of a kind spot and so awesome that you can find a campground right next to it. I’ve seen some fantastic night photography of the monument and can imagine how cool it would look on a moonlit night. I guess I’ll have to watch Close Encounters at the amphitheater. I’ve never seen it. Good to know I can kill two birds with one stone while there!
Laura, I’ve seen those shots of Devils Tower by moonlight, and they’re gorgeous! We didn’t have a full moon while we were there, and even if we did, I’ve never learned how to do nighttime photography, so that’s kind of a problem. I really should read my camera manual. If I can find it. :-) Really, it is something I would like to know how to do.
Haha, yeah, those missing apostrophes…
Now I am bummed, we were only a few miles from there but we chose to bypass it! But you hiked it for us and took home some great pictures, thank you. Were there rock climbers?
It is easy to lose a crowd, hike the more challenging one!
MonaLiza, if you guys circle back that direction, you would love Devils Tower! It’s a wonderful place to spend two or three days hiking and relaxing and enjoying the views.
There were a few climbers while we were there, which made me mad because there were signs posted asking people to not climb during the month of June. That’s when the Plains tribes gather for sacred celebrations.
Bear Lodge is one of our very favorite sacred places. We were lucky the tower trail wasn’t too busy, especially the back side.
The prairie dog town was very busy but no babies.
Thanks for taking me back to such a wonderful memory.
I like that you call it Bear’s Lodge, Jodee. That’s really what I should have titled the post!!
We were mostly alone on the trails, even for much of the Tower Trail because we went the opposite direction that most people do. It’s a beautiful, sacred place, and most people who are there seem to treat it as such.
Bear’s Lodge it is for me. We visited when I had a broken ankle and I have wanted to return and do it right, just the way you did. Seeing it from all sides, all distances, every trail. Totally wonderful to see tipis there. It seems so right. Thank you for such wonderful pictures of it all. If we can change McKinley back to Denali as we should have long ago, why can’t the same process be used for Bear’s Lodge?
Sherry, I’m with you—Bear’s Lodge it is! As I said to Jodee, that’s really what I should have titled the post. And you’re absolutely right—why can’t we change the name back to the rightful name? It doesn’t seem like it should be that big of a deal.
It was wonderful to see the tipis there and to witness the people gathering for a celebration. I hope you’ll get back to Bear’s Lodge so that you can hike the trails.
I’ll take a missing apostrophe over a misused one, but I’d rather neither! I’m with you, and that sort of thing sets my teeth on edge.
It has been many years since we were there, but I remember loving it, such an awe-inspiring place. Thanks for taking us along on another great visit!
Haha, good point, Joodie! I’ll take a missing apostrophe over a misused one any day, too. Especially the confusion over “its” and “it’s”—that seems to be the primary offender and it’s EVERYWHERE. I just saw a beautiful, brand new, official national park interpretive sign yesterday in Death Valley that used “it’s” instead of “its” and threw in a few misspelled words to boot.
I know what you mean about the missing apostrophe in Devils Tower. It drives me crazy as well. I loved this place and the hiking trails around it, giving a different perspective on each trail. Did you hike any of the trails at dusk? The legends relating to this sacred space are wonderful, aren’t they? I love that fat prairie dog and the cute little babe.
LuAnn, we hiked the Tower Trail at sunset but didn’t have great light for photography. I would have loved to be there for a full moon! I would also like to be there to see the Pleiades over the tower, like the Kiowa legend promises.
The prairie dogs were adorable, even if they are fleabags. :-)
No difficulty getting a campsite in June? Are there certain days of the week that are better than others. I love E.T.
No problems at all getting a campsite, Brenda. We always try to come into a first-come, first-served park Sunday through Thursday, early in the day. There were plenty of beautiful sites at Devils Tower. It’s a wonderful place to stay!