Sometimes, a map fools me on driving time. This was one of those times. We spent most of the day at LBH thinking that we'd have no trouble getting to Devil's Tower. Turns out, it felt like it took FOREVER. I think the more miles we accrue, the harder each mile gets. At this point, I am painfully aware of how many miles we are from home. We've travelled about 20k miles in the last 3 years. I think every mile is cumulative, even if taking 9 month breaks in-between. But listen to me...complaining about traveling too much. Good problem to have! :)
We stayed on the "big" road and just north of the Big Horn mountains.
We arrived at DT a little late in the day, but were hoping for inexpensive camping in the park. We weren't so lucky. We drove through several times, but ended up at the KOA. I always think of KOA's as a poor value. I know they are great for some people, but we don't use the amenities in most cases. This one came to just over $70 for a night. What are you gonna do? Sometimes you have no choice. DT is out in the sticks, and you really don't have many other options. My recommendation is to get there early for the $10 spots in the park.
The kids were happy despite my wallet being emptier.
And as it turns out, we did use some of the niceties of the KOA. As soon as we were set up, we went over for the nightly showing of "Close Encounters". Cheesy, yes. But a lifetime memory was made watching the movie with DT looming behind the screen.
I don't have the nighttime camera skills of some, but here was our campsite at night.
The next morning, the kids went for a swim (using those amenities) and then we went into the park. They don't allow trailers into the park, so they provide a lot for you to drop it. Turns out, when we got back to the visitors center, there were 6 or so trailers parked. Wish I had known, as unhooking and hooking is always nice to avoid.
We did the hike around the base, which was very nice. However, I don't see that there is much else to do? This is one of those "look at it" and roll on kind of parks. We spent about 3 hours total. When we left, we sat in the lot where the trailer was and had lunch.
I guess what I'm saying with this report is that (for me) I wouldn't go back and wouldn't have missed much to not have gone at all. It added several hours of driving, cost too much to stay, and didn't offer much more than you see on a postcard. Okay, haters can start hating. The kids probably feel differently.
