Our second full day of our Great American Road Trip took us into Wyoming on our way to Yellowstone. Since Devil’s Tower was on the way, we decided why not! My biggest suggestion for everyone is if you think there is a gas station off the highway to Devil’s Tower, THINK AGAIN!!! The gas station is actually 20 minutes further in from even Devil’s Tower. We literally just made it into the town to the gas station when we hit E. Yeah, I’m that good.
When we finally filled the gas tank, we headed to Devil’s Tower. This was the first place we got to use the 4th grade park pass that M got us! He was pretty excited, and I was impressed how fast he was able to answer the park ranger’s trivia!
Once there, K started working on her next Junior Ranger badge (again, M already had his and refused to get another one. Where does this stubbornness come from??) Really Devil’s Tower is all about walking trails. We walked the trail all the way around Devil’s Tower. We were so lucky to be able to see a bunch of climbers on the side of the tower, and pasted a few on their way to start climbing!
The views were just amazing, however you could still see the smoke coming down from the wildfires in Canada.
While walking on the trail, the kids were amazed to see a deer and her babies eating lunch. It was the first time we saw animals there besides the usual squirrels and chipmunks.
By the time we got back from walking around the tower, K had finished her Junior Ranger badge and took the oath!
Now, when we go on road trips, we always plan on only eating one meal out a day, so we decided to have sandwiches for lunch. Not the smartest idea here. There are no real picnic tables around the Tower. Weird, right! There are some in front of both the KOA and the general store across the street from the KOA, but they aren’t available to the public to just have a picnic. In the end, we had to drive a while and stop at a rest stop to pull out the cooler and make sandwiches. As I said, plan accordingly. Oh, and besides the small restaurant in the general store, there really isn’t a restaurant around.
All in all, while you are driving to Devil’s Tower, you will be thinking you are going off into a crazy direction. Stay the course! When you see it in the distance, you will know it is worth it!