This is one of the most mysterious places on the planet located in the northwest of the American state of Wyoming. The Devil's Rock or "Devils Tower" in 1906 became the first object officially recognized as a "national monument" of America. The age of the rock is more than two hundred million years, and its height is just over one and a half kilometers above sea level. Once upon a time it was a huge volcano, and now it is a unique and mysterious natural monument, surrounded by pine forests, meadows and lands.
The reason for the formation of the Devil's Tower was the emergence of molten magma on the Earth's surface. This melt not only formed a huge rock, but also, in the process of solidification, turned into many hexagonal columns. That is why the tower acquired such an unusual appearance. But even now, erosion processes are still continuing. Therefore, scientists concluded that once the Devil's Rock may well become an active volcano.
There is another version of the formation of the rock. According to her, the rock is also of volcanic origin, but the process of its appearance is somewhat different. Perhaps earlier, the entire area of the Great Plains, on which the Devil's Rock is located, was hidden under the ancient sea. Over the years, sedimentary layers of limestone, shale and sand lance have gradually formed on the seabed. Later, molten magma began to penetrate the rock. Without reaching the top point, the magma solidified in the form in which we can see this mountain today. At the same time, the hexagonal lines-pillars on the surface of the rock are so even that it is difficult to believe that nature created them.
The indigenous people have their own view of the history of the appearance of the Devil's Tower. They have a legend that seven girls in the forest were attacked by big bears. The children rushed to run, but the giants were running fast and almost caught up with them. At that moment, the girls climbed onto the then very small stone and began to say prayers to the Great Indian Spirit. The prayers were answered, and the stone suddenly began to grow, carrying the girls up from the bears. All that remained was to try to get in, but it only succeeded in scratching huge marks on the rock with claws. And the girls rose to the sky and turned into the stars of the Pleiades. Since then, the rock has another name - Bear's Den.
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There is also an assumption about the cosmic destination of the mountain. Many locals claim that they often noticed unidentified flying objects near the rock, which, possibly, use its top as a landing site. On the top of the Devil's Tower, mysterious lights often appear. This version was liked by the famous director Steven Spielberg, who filmed it in the film "Close Encounters of the Third Degree".
Now hundreds of thousands of tourists visit the rock every year. The most courageous dare to conquer it. Moreover, the rock is popular with climbers due to its unusual relief. Here you can hone your skills and acquire the skills of some new climbing techniques, such as slot climbing and the ability to navigate terrain.
For a long time the mountain remained inaccessible to people. And only at the end of the 19th century, local farmers climbed the top of the Devil's Tower using ordinary stairs. The next climber of the rock was professional climber Jack Durance. In 1941, parachutist George Hopkins decided to go down with a parachute onto a rock, and then from it to the ground. The landing was successful, but problems began to descend. Food and special ropes were dropped from Hopkins' planes, which often fell down or broke on the surface of the rock. The mountain was also inhabited by gluttonous rats. Due to bad weather, helicopters could not save Hopkins and he was captured at Devil's Tower. All of America learned about this case, they called professional climbers who could not climb the rock. And only its former conqueror Jack Durance saved the parachutist,who spent a week on the rock.
PS There is also another theory, the Devil's Tower is a tree stump! Read more about this in the article: "There are NO forests on Earth. We see only a miserable lichen."