*Critters we’ve seen on our
2014 trip so far: pronghorn, horse, llama,
elk, bison, grizzly, bighorn sheep, mule deer, Uinta ground squirrel, wolf,
black bear, moose, coyote, fox, bullsnake, bat, white-tailed jackrabbit,
mountain goat, yellow-bellied marmot, river otter, longhorn cattle, prairie dog
*Birds we’ve seen on our 2014
trip so far: bald eagle, grouse, osprey, magpie, red-tailed hawk, Canada goose,
great horned owl, American kestrel, sandhill crane, cliff swallow, mountain
bluebird, Ferruginous hawk,
cinnamon teal, Clark’s nutcracker, northern flicker, Brewer’s blackbird,
red-winged blackbird, Lazuli bunting, common merganser, American white pelican
[Click on any photo to enlarge.]
We left Yellowstone through the north entrance, and just a short drive
continuing north, one can easily spot a formation known as the Devil’s
Slide. Located on the side of the
Cinnabar Mountain is a formation with two parallel vertical walls of rock
each standing about 125 ft. high alongside a red shale “slide”, all the result of
millions of years of earthquakes, volcanoes, and erosion. Now the funny thing is that we have passed
this formation many times over the past few years always seeing the red slide, but it wasn’t until this
summer after watching an aerial view documentary on the 
After a night spent in the Sam’s
Club parking lot in Billings, MT, we continued our way east, passing through
the Crow Indian Reservation, past the Little Bighorn Battlefield, and past the Northern
Cheyenne Ancestral Burial Monument (at right) on the Northern Cheyenne Indian
Reservation. We’ve passed this many
times, but it’s obviously not a spot for public visitation.
Our destination was 
recognize it from the
movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind
though we’ve never seen any aliens or spaceships when we’ve visited. J) Contrary
to popular belief, the tower did not rise up from the ground through the earth.
Instead the process began 60 million years ago as molten magma pushed up into
the rock above it. As the magma cooled, it contracted and fractured into the
grooved columns. Over millions of years the softer rock and sediment
surrounding the hard volcanic rock eroded away exposing the tower, and every
side seems to offer a different view.
However, according to Native American
legends, the columns on the tower were created by claw
marks of a
large bear, and each tribe has their own version of how this occurred. The
photo at right of a painting in the visitor center depicts the Kiowa legend.
marks of a
large bear, and each tribe has their own version of how this occurred. The
photo at right of a painting in the visitor center depicts the Kiowa legend.
The monument is a very popular tourist
destination but especially for the nearly 5,000 climbers who come every year
from all over the world to climb its massive columns. The area is sacred ground to many American
Indian tribes and is still used for cere-
monies and worship today. Many of these
ceremonies occur during the month of June, and there is a ban on climbing
during this time which is why we hadn’t seen any climbers during the last
visit but that wasn’t the case this time.
We saw probably at least half a dozen spread out across the side where we
were standing plus a very 
proud fella who had made it all the way to the top. If you look closely at the photo above left, you can see two climbers...one in a blue top lower left and one in a white top standing upper right. Amazing to watch these crazy people! We didn’t walk all the way around but heard
from others that several folks were climbing on all sides.
Throughout the park you see prayer
cloths or bundles tied to trees. These are brightly colored cloths that
sometimes contain herbs, tobacco, or something symbolic to the individual, and
after a prayer is said, the cloth is tied to the tree so the wind may blow the
prayer up to the Great Spirit.
Near the campground is a sculpture
called “Circle of Sacred Smoke” which honors the American people and was created
as a gesture of world peace. The sculpture was dedicated in 2008 and represents
the first puff of smoke from a newly lit pipe used by tribal people 
to pray. Newly added since our last visit was the
World Peace Pole that reads “May Peace Prevail on Earth” in English on one side
and in the Lakota Indian language on the other.
It was dedicated on June 16, 2012, at an anniversary celebration
honoring the first World Peace and Prayer Day that was held at 
The other “attraction” at the park
seems to be the prairie dog colony.
These animals live together in closely-knit groups called “towns” and
are very social creatures. Each family
unit consists of one adult male, several 
adult females, and their
offspring. The town itself is made up of an elaborate network of interconnecting
tunnels and multiple entrance holes that provide escape routes. Prairie dogs are
active only during daylight hours, and are very vocal creatures, sending out
warning 
barks that send everyone diving into the tunnels. These tunnels may go down 3-10 ft. and horizontally 10-15 ft. and are where they
spend more than half their lives. (The photo at left shows a placard in the park that illustrates their tunnel system.) They sure are interesting critters to watch!
We had a nice couple of relaxing
days at Devils Tower
