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Routes : North America : United States : South Dakota : Custer State Park : Needles Eye : Gnomon

Gnomon

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About Gnomon:

You can see the tip of Gnomon from the west side Needles parking area if you walk a bit west. You'll say to your partner From the east side parking area which is a few hundred yards east of the tunnel, it's very obvious and not so scary looking. From the east viewpoint, the belay chains can be seen glinting in the sun. The rock is decent quality but crumbly through a few sections. The descent is via a one rope bolted rappel down the NW side. There's a nice little ledge next to the rap anchors. Save some friends (approx #1 to #3) for this ledge since belaying at the rap anchors means hanging. For what it's worth, there is a rusty pin at the ledge, too. DIRECTIONS: From the West side Needles Eye parking area, continue East through the tunnel. Park immediately after the tunnel on your left at a small pullout next to a rock. Follow an eroded trail uphill. You'll see the spire straight ahead (about 150 ft. from the road) although it's hard to make it out due to the trees.
Approach:
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Latitude, Longitude:
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Rock Type: Granite
Type of Climbing: Trad
Sun Aspect:

Routes

SequenceSequence numbers indicate the left (L) to right (R) order of the routes. Rating Route Difficulty Ascents
1 Average Rating = 4.50/5 Doody Direct 5.8 4