Entering the Tower

Devils Tower National Monument is an American treasure
Gregory R.C. Hasman photo

Devils Tower has been a big part of the American experience for over 100 years.

It was the first national monument, established in 1906 near the Belle Fouche River in Crook County, Wyoming. 

Whether someone is driving north from Moorcroft or southwest of Alva, Wyoming, Devils Tower, like the World Trade Center towers were, is noticeable from many miles away.

The tower is a huge monolith of igneous rock that rises 867 feet from its base, visually dominating the surrounding countryside that people recognize on postcards and pictures.

The landmark was featured in the 1977 movie "Close Encounters of the Third Kind," and it continues to be a popular destination. On Thursday afternoon, for example, visitors from as far away as Maryland stopped by and braved the breezy 38-degree day. 

A piece of the Devils Tower experience that may get lost, however, is the short, winding road to get to the tower known as the entrance road.

A look down the entrance road or Wyoming Highway 110.
Gregory R.C. Hasman photo

The entrance road is a state highway, Wyoming Highway 110, and it is about six-tenths of a mile in length. It goes from the intersection of Wyoming Highway 24 to the parking lot by the Devils Tower's visitors center and the entrance to the tower itself.  

Why is a road less than a mile in length so important? It's because it blends history beautifully with nature. 

Both historic and modern features occur along the road: modern features include the Belle Fourche River Bridge (constructed in 1980), and a number of paved parking or viewing pull-outs along the road's length. Historic features include the entrance station, corrugated iron culverts (some with masonry headwalls at culvert inlets), and several masonry retaining walls associated with culverts. The Old Headquarters Area Historic District is adjacent to the terminus of the road (the parking area) and is historically associated with the early road, according to the National Park Service. 

The earliest road to Devils Tower was a three-mile, 12- to 16-foot unpaved road with a grade of eight percent, constructed in 1917 by the National Park Service and Crook County. Nine visitors traveled by a horse-drawn buggy, and automobiles on this primitive road. Until 1928, there was not bridge across the Belle Fourche River, and visitors entering from the east had to ford the river. As the river was subject to sudden and unpredictable rises in the summer months, people often found themselves stranded in the park until waters subsided. A 150-foot long steel-truss bridge (with a 150-foot wooden east approach) was finally built in 1928, only to have the east approach washed out by the river the following year. The river channel was subsequently diverted in 1930 to protect the bridge. Between 1927 and 1933, serious consideration was given to the idea of extending the entrance road to form a driving loop around Devils Tower. Such a road was never completed, however, according to the National Park Service. 

During the initial phase of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's ''New Deal,'' legislation aimed at relief and recovery provided funds for maintenance or improvement of park roads and work on the entrance road began. Some portions of the road were reconstructed on new grades and alignment during 1933 and 1934. 

The establishment of a Civilian Conservation Corps camp at the monument in 1935 sped up construction developments. Several road projects were completed over the next two years, including culvert installation; construction of head walls and spillways; flattening and rounding of roadside cut and fill slopes so that they would better harmonize with the surrounding natural contours, facilitate revegetation, and minimize erosion; seeding and sodding; obliterating segments of the old roadway; moving and transplanting trees and shrubs; and installing guardrails. In 1937-1938 an oil seal coat was put on the entire road. 

While some roads in the national park system have been listed on the National Register as significant examples of engineering or due to their exceptional architectural features, the qualities which make the Devils Tower entrance road distinctive are related to the manner in which the road designers sought to integrate a transportation route with its natural surroundings, according to the Wyoming State Historic Preservation Office.

Due to the hard work from Wyomingites and CCC workers, people can enjoy a scenic drive down a two-lane highway and photograph and create their own set of memories to share with loved ones.