Visiting the Park
Location
On the fringe of the Black Hills in northeastern Wyoming, northwest of Sundance, northeast of Moorcroft, and southwest of Hulett.
Area
545 hectares (1,347 acres).
Elevation
The park is about 1,290 meters (4,250 feet) above sea level. The Tower rises another 264 meters (867 feet) to the top.
Climate
Summer temperatures cover a wide range from daily highs of 29°C (83°F) to lows of 10°C (50°F). Winter temperatures plunge below freezing for long periods of time. Spring arrives usually sometime in April, but the temperature drops quickly at night and stays cold during the day if it’s cloudy. About the end of September, fall begins, and with it the golden color of changing cottonwood leaves along the Belle Fourche River.
Best times to visit
Spring is short in the Rocky Mountain West and can be a time of violent shifts in weather: summerlike days alternating with cold, always the possibility of late heavy snowfalls, and no inbetweens. These extremes seem to be tempered somewhat at Devils Tower, and the fun of watching deer can more than make up for any inconvenience due to the weather. Whitetail deer, followed by their spotted fawns, are rubbing off winter coats. They seem to be browsing the park hungrily everywhere you look.
Summer heat, because of elevation and dry air, radiates quickly but never becomes stifling. Winds are strong and steady and there is always a danger of exposure for those unprepared for sudden thunder and lightning storms, or for the sudden cooling after sunset. Most visits to Devils Tower are made in the summer when the surrounding rangelands are green and the sparkling watercourses invite refreshment under shade of cottonwoods.
Early fall, just as the range begins to brown, is perhaps a perfect time to be at Devils Tower. The park is uncrowded after Labor Day. Protected meadows are still green. Animals are in their prime and ready for the rigors of winter. The faint odor of decaying vegetation and the foretaste of winter on a particularly bracing chill wind—these are the pleasures of a long Wyoming fall.
Winter brings an air of enforced isolation to Devils Tower. Heavy snows and frequent blizzard conditions on the highways discourage most travelers. A rare treat awaits those who do come here in winter, however. Bald eagles migrate down from the north. You might see them wheeling in pairs over an otherwise frozen landscape, or making a feast of carrion on the ground.
Access
Highways—From Rapid City, S. Dak., take I-90 west to Sundance. Wyo.; then U.S. 14 to Devils Tower Junction; then Wyo. 24 to park. From Gillette, Wyo., take I-90 east to Moorcroft, then U.S. 14 to Wyo. 24. From Newcastle, Wyo. take U.S. 16 to Moorcroft. From Belle Fourche, S. Dak., take S. Dak. 34 to Wyoming line, then Wyo. 24 via Hulett to park. Buses—Nearest regularly scheduled buses serve Moorcroft; no service to park. Railroads—Nearest rail passenger service is in Cheyenne. Airport—Rapid City Airport is served by a few commercial airlines. Cars may be rented.
Visitor Center
For a general introduction to Devils Tower, the visitor center has exhibits, an audio/visual program, trail guides and plant and animal checklists, a publications sales outlet, and an information counter with a ranger on duty to answer questions. This is also the place where climbers must register to climb Devils Tower. The visitor center is open from about May 1 to October 31. In winter information requests are answered in the headquarters administration building.
Camping
The park has one campground for which a campsite fee is charged from about May 20 through September 10. Opening and closing dates depend on weather conditions. It has about 50 camping sites which will accommodate both tent and trailer camping equipment. A water tap, restrooms, fire grills, and picnic tables are provided, but there are no utility hook-ups for trailers. Campsites are taken on a first-come, first-served basis. After September 10, or later at the first sign of freezing, the water is shut off and the road is not snowplowed. Winter camping is allowed, however.
Scheduled Activities
The featured program at Devils Tower is presented every evening during the visitor season in the campground amphitheater. The story of the nation’s first national monument is told with projected slide photographs by a park ranger who embellishes the story with colorful anecdotes about rangering experiences.
Hiking
Even if you have only time for a half-day visit to Devils Tower, it’s time enough for a hike around the tower. Tower Trail is only 2 kilometers (1.25 miles) long and traverses fairly level ground. It stays in forest shade while it skirts the jumbled mass of boulders lying at the base of the Tower. It is the only trail in the park with formal wayside markers and benches where you can stop and look at the Tower from close up.
The park has three other designated hiking trails, all of them longer than Tower Trail and generally uncrowded. Devils Tower is never out of sight for long though, so it’s not easy to get lost. The longer trails offer a chance to see different plant and animal environments; open meadows, prairie dog towns, bluffs overlooking the Belle Fourche River, the riverside habitat itself, as well as the pine forest, all of which are described in [Part 2] of this handbook.
Other accommodations
Motels, trailer courts, camping supply stores, and service stations are in the nearby town of Hulett. Just outside the park boundary is a post office, general store, and commercial campground with a few extra recreational offerings.
Establishment of park
Proclaimed September 24, 1906. Boundary changes, August 9, 1955.
Mailing address
Devils Tower, Wyoming 82714.