Devils Tower in Wyoming was the first National Monument in the United States. It’s a huge monolith resembling a tree trunk that rises 1267 feet above the Belle Fourche River.
After the park entrance, before you reach the Tower, there is a Prairie Dog Town on both sides of the road. There are hundreds of prairie dogs popping in and out of their holes. There are some parking areas so you can park and take photos of the prairie dogs, as well as the beautiful views.
At the parking area for the monument, there is a small visitor’s center with restrooms, a bookstore, and a few exhibits. There are a few telescopes so you can view the Tower. Some people were climbing the Tower the day we visited, and we saw a few people reach the top.
There is a 1.5-mile hike around the monument. We decided to take the walk, and we’re glad we did. You can view the Tower from many different angles, and there were nice views of the valleys below. We also saw some deer along the way.
I had wanted to see Devils Tower since I’d first seen it in the movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind." It was as impressive as I expected it to be!