Needles (Black Hills)

The Needles
The Needles, South Dakota, United States
Nearest city	Custer, South Dakota
Range	Black Hills
Coordinates	43°50′28″N 103°32′40″W / 43.84111°N 103.54444°W / 43.84111; -103.54444
Climbing type	traditional face and crack climbing and bouldering[1]
Height	500 feet (150 m)
Pitches	1 to 4
Grades	5.0-5.13
Rock type	granite, pegmatite
Quantity of rock	years worth ( 2,000 summits)
Development	well developed
Cliff aspect	mixed mainly traditional climbing
Season	spring to fall
Ownership	State park
Camping	none
Stars

The Needles of the Black Hills of South Dakota are a region of eroded granite pillars, towers, and spires within Custer State Park. Popular with rock climbers and tourists alike, the Needles are accessed from the Needles Highway, which is a part of Sylvan Lake Road (SD 87/89). The Cathedral Spires and Limber Pine Natural Area, a 637-acre (258 ha) portion of the Needles containing six ridges of pillars as well as a disjunct stand of limber pine, was designated a National Natural Landmark in 1976.^[2]

The Needles were the original site proposed for the Mount Rushmore carvings. The location was rejected by the sculptor Gutzon Borglum owing to the poor quality of the granite and the fact that they were too thin to support the sculptures. The Needles attract approximately 300,000 people annually.