Devil's Tower trip - Rapid City, SD

Murdo / Rapid City / Devil's Tower - Monday, July 8

The plan:

Drive from Murdo to Rapid City in the morning.
Find a place in Rapid to upload the website updates we've been working on. Also find an REI or other store to replenish a few supplies.
If it's cool outside, maybe head to the 'Middle Earth' climbing area near Sylvan Lake and do some bouldering. Otherwise visit the Crazyhorse National Monument
CC and Tom are planning to visit Mt. Rushmore
Get to the Devil's Tower Lodge in the early evening and prepare for tomorrow's day of climbing. (ie: hang out in the hot tub!)

What really happened...

Before leaving Murdo, we did a little sightseeing near the campground. Did I already mention how small the town is? Dean also cooked a yummy breakfast on the camp stove. (Yes, that's chai tea in the mug.) It's amazing how delicious freeze-dried food is when you're camping!
Drove past the gorgeous Badlands of western South Dakota. Unfortunately didn't have much time to stop & enjoy the scenery.
Obviously we found internet access in Rapid City, otherwise you wouldn't be reading this right now!
Also stopped at a climbing shop in Rapid City, to pick up some commemorative carabiners for everyone in the group. Talked to the guy working at the shop about the various climbs on Devil's Tower, and he recommended Soler. That one was also recommended by another climber friend of ours. It'll be up to our guide to determine which route(s) we'll take, so we'll just have to wait & see.
Heard some good news that the weather is supposed to start cooling off tomorrow. That would be good, since the thermometer hit 103F today at the base of the Tower!
Finally got to Wyoming by early afternoon. Got our first glimpse of the Tower! Can you find it in that picture? Hint: it's just to the left of center. Here's a close-up of the same shot (good thing our camera has a great zoom lens!)
As we got drove closer, we were able to take a good look at the south face of the tower, which is where we'll probably be climbing.
Met back up with Tom & CC just outside the entrance to Devil's Tower National Park. Got a good view of the east face of the tower.
Arrived at Devil's Tower Lodge by mid-afternoon. The cabin is pretty cool...out in the middle of nowhere, with a killer view of the Tower to the west. Made for a great sunset!


	Murdo / Rapid City / Devil's Tower - Monday, July 8 The plan: Drive from Murdo to Rapid City in the morning. Find a place in Rapid to upload the website updates we've been working on. Also find an REI or other store to replenish a few supplies. If it's cool outside, maybe head to the 'Middle Earth' climbing area near Sylvan Lake and do some bouldering. Otherwise visit the Crazyhorse National Monument CC and Tom are planning to visit Mt. Rushmore Get to the Devil's Tower Lodge in the early evening and prepare for tomorrow's day of climbing. (ie: hang out in the hot tub!) What really happened... Before leaving Murdo, we did a little sightseeing near the campground. Did I already mention how small the town is? Dean also cooked a yummy breakfast on the camp stove. (Yes, that's chai tea in the mug.) It's amazing how delicious freeze-dried food is when you're camping! Drove past the gorgeous Badlands of western South Dakota. Unfortunately didn't have much time to stop & enjoy the scenery. Obviously we found internet access in Rapid City, otherwise you wouldn't be reading this right now! Also stopped at a climbing shop in Rapid City, to pick up some commemorative carabiners for everyone in the group. Talked to the guy working at the shop about the various climbs on Devil's Tower, and he recommended Soler. That one was also recommended by another climber friend of ours. It'll be up to our guide to determine which route(s) we'll take, so we'll just have to wait & see. Heard some good news that the weather is supposed to start cooling off tomorrow. That would be good, since the thermometer hit 103F today at the base of the Tower! Finally got to Wyoming by early afternoon. Got our first glimpse of the Tower! Can you find it in that picture? Hint: it's just to the left of center. Here's a close-up of the same shot (good thing our camera has a great zoom lens!) As we got drove closer, we were able to take a good look at the south face of the tower, which is where we'll probably be climbing. Met back up with Tom & CC just outside the entrance to Devil's Tower National Park. Got a good view of the east face of the tower. Arrived at Devil's Tower Lodge by mid-afternoon. The cabin is pretty cool...out in the middle of nowhere, with a killer view of the Tower to the west. Made for a great sunset!