Needles - Custer Park, South Dakota
Posted by: 
oiseau_ca
N 43° 50.506 W 103° 32.121
13T E 617739 N 4855340
The Needles are a region of eroded granite pillars, towers, and spires that can be found in Custer State Park, Black Hills of South Dakota, USA
Waymark Code: WMMFV3
Location: South Dakota, United States
Date Posted: 09/14/2014
Views: 15
The published coordinates will bring you to the marker which can be found some 2.5 miles east of Sylvan Lake on Needles Highway, in Custer State Park (South Dakota) USA. The Needles Highway is a part of South Dakota Highway 87.
According to Wikipedia, "the Needles of the Black Hills of South Dakota are a region of eroded granite pillars, towers, and spires. 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 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".
"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".
Custer State Park is a state park and wildlife reserve in the Black Hills of southwestern South Dakota, USA. The park is South Dakota's largest and first state park, named after Lt. Colonel George Armstrong Custer.
Address:
13329 US Highway 16A, East Custer, SD 57730, United States
Phone: +1 605-255-4515
Source: Wikipedia
The text of the marker:
CATHEDRAL SPIRES AND LIMBER
PINE NATURAL AREA
HAS BEEN DESIGNATED A
REGISTERED
NATURAL LANDMARK
THIS SITE POSSES EXCEPTIONAL VALUE
AS AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE NATION'S NATURAL
HERITAGE AND CONTRIBUTES TO A BETTER
UNDERSTANDING OF MAN'S ENVIRONMENT
1977
NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OT THE INTERIOR
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