"Travelogue: Mato Tipila (Devil's Tower), Wyoming"

Welcome to Mato Tipila, which in Lakota translates to Bear Lodge. While most think of the Black Hills as being in South Dakota, there is a part of the same complex in Wyoming, wherein this sacred site lies on the western edge.

Many (older) folks know it as "that place" featured in the 1977 movie "Close Encounters Of The Third Kind" by Steven Spielberg. Of the many indigenous tribes that held this landmark sacred, there are just as many variations on the legend of how it was created. The Cliff Notes version of the Lakota story is that there were 7 sisters being chased by a bear, and they climbed atop a giant stump that grew and grew, carrying them from the attacking bruin. It grew tall enough to keep the sisters safe from the bear's mighty paw, which continually reached up for them, clawing down the side of the mountain creating the texture we see today. Too, I'm not sure there is any more of a sacred 'chapter' in Lakota history than the arrival of the White Buffalo Calf Pipe given to White Buffalo Calf Woman...which, according to legend, took place at Mato Tipila, as well.

White Man called it Devil's Tower, for a reason not really known. Tribal interests have been wanting the rightful name returned to what is now a National Park, but you can figure where the rest of that story goes...part of our ugly on-going antics that are ultimately tied to dollars, pride, and ego of a dominant culture. But I digress. The rocks are cool...Mato Tipila is what's left of a neck of basaltic rock from an extinct volcano..."polygonal contraction" is the fancy phrase assigned to basalt's cooling properties, where in the solidification process polygonal tubes form and crack/erode along the joints.

The paved Loop Trail circumvents the mountain allowing varying views at different times of day and sun angles. Your neck does get a little tired always looking up, I'll admit. As is the case with any 'experience', it is especially meaningful to understand the history and culture of an area before you visit it...so, as the wind whispers through the evergreens, you can imagine what this place was like prior to western man's footprints...the awe, the power, the sacredness...and an opportunity to give thanks and honor those that went before us a looooong time ago...

Very close by are these well-known and named "Red Beds" that surround the area and the Bell Fourche River Valley. In the foreground pictured below is wild sage, one of the four sacred herbs to Native Americans that once dried is used ceremonially to cleanse a space of any evil spirits that might be hanging around, helping make things pure again. It works.

To not address the issue of the on-going clash between sacred aboriginal interests and that of modern society would be a disservice to this mountain. Rock climbers love it. Tribes hate it, feeling that the hammering of metal into their sacred 'sanctuary' and climbing all over it desecrates its holiness...nothing less than letting people scale the National Cathedral in DC to get a better view on a pretty day. During the summer there is a month's voluntary ceasing of such activities so that the native tribes can carry out annual ceremonies and traditions there, as they used to do through the centuries. It's a start, at least.

It's the kind of place I would have liked to camp near for the night, so I could explore various areas at different times of the day. I did go post-tourist season, which made the experience even nicer, but being a National Park there are strict limits to pets, and my (then) "Two Amigos" were always aboard the "K9 LIMO" (my car's license plate, then).

Walk softly upon this earth, and give daily thanks...always remembering that we are stewards of Nature, not masters over it.

My "MATO TIPILA" video postcard on YouTube

"Travelogue: Crazy Woman Canyon, Wyoming"

(click on pics to enlarge)

I had planned a long weekend to traipse through the Bighorn Mountains in Wyoming, and chose to enter through a neat place called Crazy Woman Canyon...the name was enough to entice me, with variations on the legend aplenty (found this interesting excerpt link from a book titled "Crazy Woman Creek"). As I approached the eastern ramparts, it was getting late in the day, hence the angled light on the front range that greeted me to the Bighorn complex...

The first bit of the road had the right/north side in full sun, showing the sedimentary ledges nicely with the specular lighting...

...and soon enough the canyon walls closed in on me...the road crossed this simple wooden bridge, and from there on out it was a narrow coursing that even my wide-angle lens had a hard time encompassing...
(note the golden 'glow' around the bend...)

I can only imagine how waters rage through here after storms or serious snow melt...at this time the lower reaches had only trickles, echoing against the massive canyon walls...

As you know from recent posts, I love to go in close when I have the chance. Since lenses didn't really help tell the story of the canyon, I figured closer-framed scenes would give you a sense of the beauty I ran into that afternoon and evening...

It was clearly fall, of course, mid September there...the colors while muted in the shade did have a saturation that was very warming...while I don't know the plant shown below, here in the Southeast is a plant called Dolls Eyes, for obvious reasons: previous generations would use these late-season berries for the eyes of homemade dolls.

Water is magical almost any way you look at it. Below, I focused on the ripples reflecting the strong west light on the east rim wall, bouncing the reflections in the cerulean-based waters, whose azure tones are accentuated in the shadows...

Too, the mix of golden leaves, with gnarled exposed roots, up against a Grandfather rock...a scene that really grounds me with the 'elements' all coming together for a family portrait...

'Twas late in the day when I got to the top of the canyon, which opened up to the upper plateau of the Bighorns...and I snapped this serene scene while stopped on a simple bridge...

I realize most of us don't have the opportunity to get into such places...the healing and peaceful enveloping is indescribable, as you may well imagine...which is why I hope in some way even but one of you finds some solace in these pics, even if it makes you wistful. You won't be alone, I can assure you...

"Travelogue: Elk Mountain, WY/SD border

(click photos to enlarge)

Welcome to Elk Mountain, overlooking Highway 16 between Jewel Cave National Monument, SD, and Newcastle, WY.

In 2001, lightning-induced fire ravaged this state-straddling mountain, an area that is no stranger to fire danger. A long winding road leads from the valley to the top of this broad, linear summit, which has an active fire tower at the northern terminus.

While there is obviously new life re-establishing itself, it's one of those places you might decide to pass on, given the lack of aesthetics from the charred vertical matchsticks...


...and yet, there is the occasional pocket where the fire 'jumped' and spared the vegetation, as well. No, this is not one of those classic picturesque destinations that is a "must see", but I'm a firm believer that wherever you are, there are treasures to be found...as long as you are open to finding them.

What large boulder formations were there are still full of interest beckoning to be explored, and home to various plants in the nooks and crannies as well as protective shelters for insects and small mammals.

Compared to the rest of this region, which lies in the extreme southwest corner of the Black Hills Complex, the surrounding landscape is subtle...by all appearances it looks gently rolling, although upon closer inspection there are myriad vegetated canyons and 'draws' worth exploring and driving ('nuther travelogue for another day).

And so I began to look closer at little parts of the picture...the flowers having a hay-day in all the sunshine they now enjoy...

...watching an unidentified butterly (Brush-footed species?) relax a moment...

...catching a grasshopper before it makes a leap many times it's body length...

One of the more relaxing aspects for me was that I had it all to myself while I was there. Did climb the fire tower and speak to the ranger on duty (where I captured some of the vistas like the one below); otherwise, it was another day of relaxation, exploration...and wonderment.

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NOTE: Come back tomorrow for a look at a strange centuries-old annual tradition from across The Pond that took place just a few days ago...a case study in how to jeopardize your body's health!

"Travelogue: Medicine Wheel, The Bighorns, Wyoming"

(click pics to enlarge...2 are panoramas)

Welcome to a very unique, sacred site known as "Medicine Wheel" in the Bighorn Mountains of north-central Wyoming. The site is clearly marked off of Highway 14-A in the northwestern ramparts of the Bighorns. Evidence suggests that this location has been in use for as long as 7,000 years... this roughly 80-foot circumference ancient site still serves as a gathering point for many sacred Native American ceremonies and rituals, with rock alignments also closely tied to major celestial events, as well.

Sitting on a high alpine plateau at an elevation of 9,642 feet, this site yields vistas of such areas as the Bighorn Basin, the Absaroka Range, the Wind River, and the Pryor Mountains. Given the geographic location, I can't imagine the fickleness of weather conditions at the Spring and Fall Equinoxes, or the Winer Solstice...but this "Circle" was quite active during it's time. A long time.


There are 28 spokes to the wheel...believed to be the (average) 28 days to a lunar cycle...two of the 6 cairns mark the horizons of sunrise and sunset...while the remaining four cairns mark the rising of the brightest stars...

It was not a location unique to an individual tribe; most feel it was an area of religious significance to more than 70 tribes, mostly Plains Tribes (especially Crow and Shoshone in recent history).

It has a cultural and historic significance far beyond that of an observatory, though those elements clearly exist to this day. Of notable chiefs using this site was Chief Joseph, of the Nez Perce nation, who fasted at this site for his spiritual revelations. Clearly, such an indigenous and sacred site was worth immediate preservation, especially with the spike in tourism felt in the 1970s. 8-9 months out of the year, snow prohibits access, which puts tremendous pressures on the site in the summer months.

The 'preservation factor' is far from secure, however. Local logging interests continue to oppose the landmark designation decrees, and propose that their nearby logging will not hurt "spiritual interests." As recently as 1988, when the US Forest Service took public comments on proposed land-use changes at the site, 85% of the 775 responses were on a petition from Native Americans...and the Forest Service counted those 659 responses as one. One. There was even an option which called for the wheel to be bulldozed, but thankfully that was averted in favor of continued protection.

Sadly, there has been a high turnover of USFS management personnel in that district over the past 20 years as a result of the on-going racism that flies in both directions there (including death threats to one supervisor); as well, there is the continued legal pressure from the logging industry, filing lawsuits against the USFS to open the area up for timber operations. To say the least, protection of the Medicine Wheel site has been, well...hare-raising.

Travelogue: Shell Canyon (Bighorns), Wyoming

Welcome to Shell Canyon, carved by Shell Creek, on the west-central flanks of the Bighorn Mountains in north-central Wyoming...

One of the first things that will strike you in the overall region is the clarity of the air, the lack of haze and suspended particles more often than not. Too, I ventured there after tourist season (smart thing to do!) and had many places to myself.

Bighorn Scenic Highway (Highway 14) winds through the canyon between the valley floor and the upper plateau. Over eons the waters have eroded through the sedimentary rock down to the ancient granitic bedrock. Shell Falls is a favored stopping point to look more closely at the falls and surrounding area, falling itself over the "Grandfather" rock formations.

All around the upper Rim you can see the sedimentary beds lining the canyon like ramparts, eventually sloping into carpeted surfaces toward the creek's waterway. Wonderful geologic features like faults and synclines are also readily visible to the trained eye.

Of course, I also really enjoy the up-close textures and patterns rock and lichens play in concert together, not to mention the various types of rocks found side by side...

...as well as the striated staining of groundwater perking through certain minerals that help to paint their own tapestry on the rock surfaces along Shell Creek...

For the adventurous there are several good trails that will take you up the canyon walls, and return you to the cold refreshing waters upon returning...

But don't think this is what the Bighorns are all about...as you will see in future travelogues, the 1.1 million acres in Bighorn National Forest harbors diverse geologic and geographic regions, over 1,500 miles of hiking trails, and more than 30 campgrounds.

Shell Canyon isn't a very long stretch of highway, but what it lacks in length it more than makes up for in variety. Anytime I see a scene like the one above, I'm led to go walking through it. Don't forget, all of these pics will enlarge for a better look...all you have to do is click on 'em.

And is it just me, or don't we often find ourselves wondering what it would be to have experienced wonderlands like these before they were ever developed?

Enjoy!