This is part 2 of a 3-part post about the 6th day of our trip. See part 1 here.
Picking up where I left off in the last post: Todd and I had just hiked up to Harney Peak (now known as Black Elk Peak) and were about to enter this cave:
The mysterious cave
Turns out it's not a cave - it's a rock chamber that's open on top. Along one wall there's a set of steps that spirals up...
...to these stairs which bisect the top of the chamber.
Glad we made it this far, but we're not quite there yet
Don't look down Ok, now look down and see the entrance to the chamber in the lower left corner.
Going up...
...and up and up and...
...looking back the way we came and...
...what's this?
The old fire tower! We made it!
Construction by the CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) of the fire tower was completed in 1939. The tower was abandoned in 1967 when planes and helicopters took over the watch for fires.
Stunning views
I'll let you practice your research skills on this one, but will tell you that Wasicu Wakan translates to "Holy White Man". This is the tomb of Dr. Valentine McGillycuddy; his ashes are interred here at the fire tower.
Still more steps to go. Todd's waiting by the window.
It was about this time that we heard voices coming up from behind - a short while later a man and woman appeared at the bottom of the stone stairs. We hadn't seen or heard anyone else on the trail on the way up here so we think they came up the route from Sylvan Lake. We exchanged pleasantries and were considerate to stay out of each other's way/pictures.
Cathedral Spires and Little Devil's Tower
Observation platform
What's that?
The water reservoir and roof of the pump house (lower right). A dam was constructed to provide water to the tower for the crew that was housed here.
The tower. Steep stairs lead up to the lookout, or down below to the bunkhouse, then on to the pump house. (It was too dark for photos, but there was a sign that basically this is a historic site - don't vandalize it).
Exiting the bunkhouse and heading down these steps to the pump house
Water in the reservoir to the left
Just a derelict shell now
The lone window in the pump house. Let's take a closer look...
Ripples on the water
Going back up the stairs from the pump house; so steep and narrow I used my hands and half-crawled up.
If you walk past the stairs leading to the pump house you can clamber down the rocks to a little grassy area and beyond. We rested here and ate our fruit/granola bars, being sure to pack the wrappers back in our bags. I think the other couple left at this point, as we didn't hear or see them again when we climbed back up to the tower.
9:45am sun. Oh look, a bird:
I don't have a problem with heights - it's the edges I don't like
Tread very carefully, and steady...steady...
Todd is king of the hill
That is you Todd, isn't it?
Looking down from the very top of the tower
Amazing views from the top...
Very proud of us for making it up here
We reveled in our success for a while at the top, then it was time to head back down. We still had a long hike ahead, but it would be quicker and less arduous than than the trip up. We passed another couple when we exited the "cave" at the base of the tower, and passed several more on our return trip as they made their up the trail. Almost all were coming from the direction of Sylvan Lake, so when we turned off of that trail to go back to the Cathedral Spires trailhead we were alone again. It wasn't until we were almost back at the trailhead when we passed a few other people who were headed up, mainly to Cathedral Spires or Little Devil's Tower.
Back at the parking lot (which was almost full now) we congratulated ourselves and then drove back to the cabin. We arrived just shy of 1 o'clock - our hike took approx. 5 hours and we spent about an hour at the top.
I can't recommend this experience enough for anyone able-bodied enough to do it safely. It's not easy, but the reward is definitely worth the effort.
Since it was only 1pm when we got back to the cabin, we still had quite a bit of day left. I'll cover that in the next post. Thanks for reading!
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