Day 297. May 30, 2014. Devil's Tower Monument

LOCATION:  Northeast Wyoming

WEATHER:  Cool,in AM (50s).  Very pleasant in PM (60s)

After camping overnight in the rustic Spearfish Canyon campground, we took a 2-hour hike to some nearby waterfalls.  This used to be gold mining country.  We read that at one point, more gold was mined here than in the California Gold Rush.   It is a beautiful area.

We packed up and drove west about 75 miles.  We stopped at the Wyoming Visitor Welcome Center where they made campground reservations for us at Yellowstone.  They said we were lucky to get the campground we wanted, as sites fill up fast.   

We are staying at Devil's Tower Monument tonight.  We hiked about 4 miles to the base of the monument, then around it.  We saw crazy rock climbers climbing straight up.  We could hear one climber about halfway up.  She was having a panic attack....couldn't find a hold and couldn't breathe.  They "free climb" which means that they don't have ropes.  Not for me!   I'm still sore from our hikes in the Badlands....from the rope ladder and from the vertical path.  Hope this hiking is doing some good!

This is the view from the Prairie Dog Town at the base

And here is one of the cute critters 

We made a campfire and enjoyed the view from our site

DINNER:   I sautéed onions, mushrooms, and garlic over the campfire.  Then added leftover corn, penne pasta and a can of octopus.  To that, I stirred in some cream cheese and some white wine for a  cream  sauce.  Very good!  We enjoyed eating outside at the picnic table.