We headed out this morning for a scenic drive through Wyoming's striking terrain, marked by the different layers of rock made visible over millions of years. I should also note that this is the first time on the trip I've been a little drunk as I write this.
After driving for a few hours, we reached Devils Tower. This was another "wow" moment as we drove over a ridge and suddenly the tower came into view. It's definitely a striking piece of terrain: a tower of igneous rock exposed by ages of erosion. It's easy to see why the local American Indians consider it to be a holy place. In fact, they have a legend about how it was created that involved a girl who knew bear medicine changing into a giant bear and chasing other members of the tribe until a rock and a tree grew to give them a safe haven.
We took a 1.3-mile hike around the tower, which affords some nice views of the six-sided columns that, depending on your perspective, were created either by crystallizing rock or a giant bear's claws. There are tons of bikers is these parts. Apparently the Black Hills of South Dakota are some kind of huge attraction to them and Devils Tower is another gathering point for their rallies.
After leaving the tower, we headed to Deadwood, South Dakota. It's another Palm Springsesque spot, although more rugge than either the Springs, Jackson, or Couer D'Alene. Despite having plenty of casinoes and cowboy re-enactments to rope in the tourists, some of its citizens still look like they could be heading out to work a claim in the morning.
After dinner at the Number 10 Social Club, we went to watch a "play" re-enacting the trial of
Jack McCall, the man who killed Wild Bill Hickok. The play wasn't that great, but Agent Orange got cast as one of the witnesses. Seeing him attempt a Southern/Dakotan accent was definitely the highlight of the play.Next, we headed to the Number 10 Casino/Saloon, which is the actual place where Wild Bill was shot and killed. We gambled for hours on $2 minimum tables and finished up about even. Unlike my last trip to Vegas, $2 hands are pretty chillaxed and I didn't have to deal with the constant pressure of feeling like I could be cleaned out at any moment. The pit boss also looked like he might've been around in 1876, when the town started up.
1 comment:
Good for people to know.
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