Devil Information

Many people first saw Devils Tower Wyoming in the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind. With a flat top and ridges down the sides, it has a unique look. In fact in the movie, it was replicated in mashed potatoes and in dirt from someone’s backyard. Eventually some aliens landed there. Even though aliens haven’t landed on it, people still enjoy it.

Something has to be explained. Devils Tower Wyoming is a mountain, not a city. You can check out maps of it at the University of Wisconsin website. They describe the elevation of this location and give a very complete view of how this natural structure looms above the surrounding countryside. That’s incredible, as the saying goes.

Yet one more clarification about Devils Tower Wyoming. Notice that when it’s written the apostrophe is missing. Most people would write it “devil’s”. But the name has never been written that way. So don’t be alarmed, or think it’s a mistake when it’s seen without the apostrophe before the “s.”

Devils Tower Wyoming was declared a national monument in 1906. Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt did it. He was never called that by his close friends. He was also responsible for the US involvement in the Panama Canal. The national monument encompasses 5.45 square kilometers. That’s 1374 acres.

The Devils Tower Wyoming stands 1267 feet above the surrounding land. That’s almost a mile above sea level. It’s tall. Even so, the size and sheer height have not stopped people from climbing it. 4000 people a year, 1% of the 400,000 who travel there, climb the tower. It’s not as challenging as Mt. Everest. Of course, the most dangerous part of climbing Mount Everest is getting down the mountain. Enough people climb that mountain that a queue forms at the top to make the descent. Most of those who are hurt are hurt because of exposure to the elements while waiting to get down the mountain. The Devils Tower isn’t like that.

Devils Tower Wyoming first began to form about 200 million years ago during the Triassic Period. It includes various types of rocks from sandstone, to silt stone, and shale. This combination makes for quite a colorful disposition.

Find more about Devils Tower Wyoming with an online search.

The Devils Tower Wyoming is a mountain originally made famous in the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind.  It has a very distinctive look with a flat top and deep ridges all along its size sides.  In fact in the movie, it was replicated in mashed potatoes and in dirt from someone’s backyard.  Eventually some aliens landed there.  While truth may not be stranger than fiction in this case, it’s still an interesting place.

Lets clear something up from the start.  When it’s written “Devils Tower Wyoming” that doesn’t refer to a town or city in Wyoming, it refers to this mountain.  Speaking of which, the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point has some amazing topographical maps on its website.  They describe the elevation of this location and give a very complete view of how this natural structure looms above the surrounding countryside.  It really is an awesome site.

Yet one more clarification about Devils Tower Wyoming.  Notice that when it’s written the apostrophe  is missing.  In other words, one would expect an apostrophe”s” at the end of devil in the name.  But the name has never been written that way.  So don’t be alarmed, or think it’s a mistake when it’s seen without the apostrophe before the “s.”

Devils Tower Wyoming became a national monument on September 24, 1906.  It was an act of President Theodore Roosevelt, known popularly as Teddy.  He was never called that by his close friends.  He was also responsible for the US involvement in the Panama Canal.  The national monument encompasses 5.45 square kilometers.  That’s 1374 acres.

The Devils Tower Wyoming stands 1267 feet above the surrounding land.  It’s nearly a mile above sea level.  That’s big.  Even so, the size and sheer height have not stopped people from climbing it.  In fact, of the 400,000 people who visit each year, about 4000 make the climb.  It’s certainly not as dangerous as a place like Mount Everest.  Of course, the most dangerous part of climbing Mount Everest is getting down the mountain.  That’s because so many people climb that there is a line, an actual queue, to make the descent.  People often die of exposure to the elements while waiting.  That doesn’t happen at the Devils Tower.

Devils Tower Wyoming first began to form about 200 million years ago during the Triassic Period.   It includes various types of rocks from sandstone, to silt stone, and shale.  This combination makes for quite a colorful disposition.

Learn more about Devils Tower Wyoming by searching on Google.

If you ever seen the movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind then you’ve seen the Devils Tower. This distinctive mountain landmark is hard to miss.

It became famous when Richard Dreyfuss began having visions of the Devils Tower with its flat top and ridged sides. Soon after having the visions he constructs a crew sculpture in his mashed potatoes. Needless to say his family is alarmed. He becomes more and more obsessed with the mountain. First he makes paintings of it, then he goes off the deep end. When he brings in piles of dirt from the yard to create a scale replica in his living room, his wife and kids leave him. It’s a very famous scene in the movie.

Eventually Richard’s character travels to Wyoming to see the real Devils Tower. Despite warnings from the military to stay away, he sneaks up to the mountain. There he sees an amazing spectacle. Aliens land after communicating with humans using a giant organ. Many people, abducted long ago, come off the ship. Richard’s character is amongst those who choose to travel with the aliens back to their home planet. Given the way Hollywood makes sequels, it’s surprising this open ending didn’t spawn a second movie. It still might. Later versions shown on television and released on DVD included scenes inside the ship. But these weren’t very well done.

Back to the real Devils Tower. It’s located in Wyoming. It’s a monolithic igneous intrusion, otherwise known as a volcanic neck. This is also known as a lava neck. It forms when magma flows out of a volcanic vent. It’s generally the sign of an active volcano. It’s not certain that this formation is such a plug. But many geologists believe it is.

The Indians have a legend about how Devils Tower was formed. Some Indian sisters were walking in the wilderness, picking flowers, when they came upon some bears. The bears chased them. The Great Spirit helped the girls by raising up the land upon which they stood. The Bears would not give up. They tried to climb up to the girls but as they neared the top slid back down. Their claws left the indentations in the side of the structure.

Another legend, this one told by the Sioux Indians, was of two boys wandering far from their village. A giant bear called Mato came upon them. It had claws the size of tepees, and it wanted to eat the boys for breakfast. The boys prayed to the creator to help them. He did, raising the ground beneath them. Just as with the stories involving the girls, and this one the giant bear tried to get at them from all sides but could not. Its huge claw marks remain.

Whether fantastic tales of giant bears or friendly aliens the Devils Tower is a great place to visit.