Rock Climbing in Vedauwoo Home of the Ancients

We're out here in Pole Mountain area in Medicine Bow National Forest, Wyoming. And it's just definitely this sense of just ancient, you know, I guess that's I always loved Midwest. And that's where I did all my growing up. So I guess it's kind of, in a sense, you know, this is home. Just rub some sage on my hands. Didn't have any hand sanitizer, right? So nature's hand sanitizer. The smell of sage. This dry, rocky earth. Smell that sage. There's nothing more refreshing than the smell of freshly rubbed mountain sage. Just the sound of the wind through the pine. And it's really kind of pretty warm out here. Got a lot of the clatter from the grasshoppers. But I want to show you guys a pretty dramatic rock formation that I saw from the road. So I decided to pull over and take a gander. It's good to get out and get a little blood pumping through your veins. Go for a short little walk now and then when you're driving so long. Been in the car all day, all morning, just trying to figure out where we're going. Get our bearings, you know, that's usually how we are. We just totally unplanned, head out, and I have no idea usually where we're going and how to get there. But it's more of an adventure sometimes. A little more stressful, but it's also a little bit more of an adventure. Just kind of heading out into the great unknown, right guys? Make it sound all dramatic. But it's really warm out here. Might have to take this flannel off pretty soon. I'm just using it right now. Kind of shade me from the sun because it is almost like a high desert. It's definitely high desert heat. Sun up here. Yeah, you can see there's a lot of, I think it's arapaho. I think is one of the ones that I read. Natives that would make little dwellings out of some of these rock formations and you can see why. Kind of like that pyramid back there that I captured last night. You know, the ancient peoples, the ancients, right, who used to inhabit this land, they would have that natural kind of built within us. Our minds are designed to make sense of the world and to find meaning, right? And so when they saw something that was prominent, you know, in the landscape, oftentimes the natives would, you know, designate that kind of a holy site. They would think something special has got to be about this place, right? And similar to the pyramid builders of old and of more recent, something within us when we see something that is so stark, striking within the natural landscape that stands apart from what we're used to seeing, I guess, is something that makes us, kind of just that, inspires that sense of awe. So you can see why the ancients, Native Americans, would find this place interesting. Some of these rock formations, let me show you guys. You don't have to sit here and look at me. In particular, I was really struck by that almost square-like rocks balancing on one another. And this place is also known, of course, for its rock climbing. A lot of those climbing cracks that go up through the mountains, a lot of people like to climb. But yeah, it's from back here where we were, that balancing rock there in the foreground was just really dramatic, just kind of floating up there in the heavens, this big balancing rock. You might want to relocate. I think I'd like to go down this road. There's a road right there, actually. We're not too sure. It's very confusing, as they tend to be, I think, intentionally, these national forests. So there's no signs. I have yet to see a sign for ATV travel, right? We usually have that in Colorado. I'm used to that. I know my hat's kind of funny, but let's keep the sun off my face. I'm getting older, and I've got to protect my precious lizard skin. But I've yet to see a sign saying ATVs or OHVs or, what's the other one, MVs, something. I kind of like how they redefine UFO, right? An Identified Flying Object to a UAV now, I think it's called. I don't even know. But yeah, there's not any clear designated signs in front of any of the roads around here saying this is legal. On their website, you know, they'll openly tell you, you know, if you're caught ATVing on a undesignated area, you could face a fine of $5,000 and or 60 days in jail. But then we go and look up on the website, this pole area, pole mountain area, and there's this old, looks like something out of the 1800s itself, black and white map of the area. And apparently all the roads are for all motorized vehicles. So it's kind of weird. Maybe it's a Wyoming thing. I didn't grow up in Wyoming. I grew up in Colorado, so maybe some of you out there might know better if you're more familiar with Wyoming and their laws. But so it's kind of weird and same time I'm like not that excited about it because it's like it's all just main roads. Like that's all I've, it's not any kind of, not that I've seen yet. Anyway, I know we haven't explored this whole, what is it, 50 some thousand acre Medicine Bow National Forest wilderness area. But yes, as far as, you know, we've been driving for hours and as far as I've seen, it's just a bunch of pull-off spots for camping and like a main dirt road. So I'm like, okay, that's exciting. Why do I want to come out here? You know, haul my ATV out here on a trailer like we have done just to ride on roads that I could do with my truck. You know, I don't get it. Anyway, so maybe I'm missing something. But yeah, it's just, it doesn't matter what state you're in anymore. You'd think Wyoming, right, would be a little bit more, I don't know, freedom friendly with all the good old boys and the cowboys, but the Dick Cheney's, right, didn't he come from Wyoming? That's pretty telling. Yeah, I guess it doesn't matter what state you're in, you still got to face these little fascist restrictions on all of our rights no matter where you go. Setting nature, you know, above man. Any case, it's a beautiful place. Not so ideal so far for ATVing, but it's definitely got a nice quiet beauty. Yeah, I've yet to see one ATV. I've seen a couple empty trailers, but I've yet to see one ATV or a dirt bike riding around anywhere out here. So that's why I'm kind of leery to even try. I don't know, maybe it wasn't meant to be. Maybe it makes more sense just to take it easy, right, slow down. I think it's lunchtime, so I'm headed back, but I'm checking in a bit, see what we find further on up the road. They say on the sign that there's all kinds of treasures to be found out here. It just seems like it's more and more restricted, harder and harder to find those treasures. Yeah, you got to keep the cattle on the right paths, fenced in or fenced out. Anyway, check back in a bit. Well, I found an arrowhead, but I found a tent stake. That's a little more practical. I'll actually put that to use. So I'm walking down this narrow channel right now alongside this massive imposing fortress wall, and you get the sense that you're like, I don't know, just related to something contemporary. Standing next to an ancient castle in Lord of the Rings or something like that, Lord of the Rings trilogy. That's just a very interesting ambiance that's created from this little, or big rather, rock outcropping. Look at how straight that thing is, right? Doesn't that look like a perfect wall? It's a mighty fortress. This creates this unique little environment. You can walk through these little cliffs and crags, cave systems everywhere. It's a really neat area. I'm glad we made our way up here. Just every angle you look, more and more dramatic views. The ever-present potato rock. I don't know what else to call it. It's a pretty prominent feature though. Got these massive cliff walls just create this unique little environment in here. Partly probably from all the runoff from the rain. It's a little micro-system in here, micro-climate. Yeah, look at this imposing walkway here. Trust me, pictures don't do it justice. You can see some ancient pictographs. I'm not sure what this symbol means. I'm not an expert on Native American studies or anything like that. Yeah, look at this rock. It's kind of perched up there precariously. Yeah, you could just explore for days out here. I'd imagine that they're still probably tucked away out here somewhere. Probably another flint arrowhead. That's my best guess. Good luck finding one though, especially in these areas with so much foot traffic. Well, I'll tell you, people these days aren't very observant about anything of the outside world other than what's on their little screens. Typically a smartphone held about, you know, 12 inches from their face. You might get lucky. If you have the time to wander around long enough, usually a good couple hours, you might stumble on an ancient artifact. I've been in areas of Mesa Verde, of course, when I was a kid. That's probably what really captured my imagination. Back in the days, the Four Corners area, they still allowed people to walk the desert and pick up whatever they found. I distinctively remember, it was like kind of a church trip thing, even though I wasn't like born and raised in the church. My parents at the time were involved in the church and they sent all of us kids out on this kind of a field trip type thing. And I remember I was wandering in the desert and I found some of the coolest shards of pottery and I even found one of those little stones, like he used, pistol and mortar that they used for grinding their corn fully intact until one day I brought it to school for show and tell and a kid dropped it, busted the handle off. I was so upset with that kid. But yeah, I remember on that field trip, one of the people that was with us found a, he thought it was a wolf skull. It's probably more like a coyote now that I think about it, but he thought it was a wolf skull out there in the desert. I remember holding it up, it was the coolest thing to see, but I've always had a fascination with the ancient past and how it speaks to us in the present, right? That's what really makes these places, I guess, the most magical, I guess we want to use that Disney phrase, is the people that once inhabited this land and their stories and how they relate to us and just the common humanity we all have, right? You know, nobody is less human than anybody else, right? We're all human. We're all in the same falling condition as we are described in the Bible. There's a little natural like hangout with the rocks here. Somebody thought it might be a nice place for a campfire. It's kind of neat, this little gathering of rocks, little seats to those fabled imaginary gods, right? Everywhere you look, you see these interesting stacked rock formations. You could see how people without any knowledge of how a wind or water erosion affects the landscape, you could see how they'd wonder, man, how did those giants that once walked the earth, how did they stack those rocks so perfectly? Such ease, it seems. There's always been stories of giants, hasn't there? Even in the Bible, you know, it's thought that Adam was, for different estimates, from 18 feet tall to 20 some feet. Look at this. I found a little treasure after all. Isn't that cool? I would almost say that's a hawk. Fit in now with the locals, the natives. At first, I was thinking turkey, but that might be a hawk. I'll have to look that up later. If I had an app on my phone, I could probably tell you right away, but too cheap for those things. And some of those apps, we're using an app, just a free trial, just to find our way out here. Man, it's like a hundred, hundred and some bucks a year. It shows you all the trails, lets you navigate your way around. These things aren't cheap. It's nice to have that information, but unless I'm making a living off of it or something, you know, I can't see myself justifying that expense. Just for an occasional road trip. Hey, maybe if I make this a habit, get enough thumbs up, right guys? Shares, share and like, maybe I will. Check out more interesting locations like this one and learn a bit, learn a little bit about the history along with you guys. It'd be a great way to make a living, wouldn't it? Man, if only all of us could be that lucky. Anyway, look at this scenery once again, before I catch back up with the other one. I kind of prefer the ones unhewn, you know, those altars in the Bible. Make an altar not hewn by man, because then they would tend to worship it. Hebrew people, like any other ancient people, were eager to worship anything out of the ordinary. Whether it's a golden calf that they imported out of Egypt or a high place, you know, under a green tree or moloch. They'd sacrifice their children to it. This is pretty neat on the other side over here. I'm gonna watch my step. It's kind of sketch. It's pretty epic over there. I think that's a hawk or a turkey. Turkey? The heck is a turkey doing way up here? You know, yeah, pretty cool sky. What a view. You can just imagine some of the Native Americans sitting here out of the noonday sun, maybe communally sharing a picnic, right? Just gazing out over the plains here. See if there's any activity. Maybe a buffalo herd. Their seasonal migration. Maybe rival tribe. Remind me of some of the places in Mesa Verde where they built their little cliff dwellings right into the rock like that. I'm not sure if there are any like that in this area. I haven't seen any pictures anyway. Yeah, it's a perfect place to hide out. Yeah, sketchy boulder.