Needles (Black Hills)
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 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. Climbing In 1936 Fritz Wiessner climbed the ''Totem Pole'' and in 1937 ''Khayyam Spire'' with Bill House and Lawrence Coveney. In 1947 Jan and Herb Conn moved to the area and over the next couple decades pu ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Black Hills
The Black Hills ( lkt, Ȟe Sápa; chy, Moʼȯhta-voʼhonáaeva; hid, awaxaawi shiibisha) is an isolated mountain range rising from the Great Plains of North America in western South Dakota and extending into Wyoming, United States. Black Elk Peak (formerly known as Harney Peak), which rises to , is the range's highest summit. The Black Hills encompass the Black Hills National Forest. The name of the hills in Lakota is ', meaning “the heart of everything that is." The Black Hills are considered a holy site. The hills are so called because of their dark appearance from a distance, as they are covered in evergreen trees. Native Americans have a long history in the Black Hills and consider it a sacred site. After conquering the Cheyenne in 1776, the Lakota took the territory of the Black Hills, which became central to their culture. In 1868, the U.S. government signed the Fort Laramie Treaty of 1868, establishing the Great Sioux Reservation west of the Missouri River, and exempt ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Sylvan Lake Road
Sylvan or Sylvans (from the Latin ''silva'': "forest, woods") may refer to: Places United States * Sylvan, Illinois, a former settlement * Sylvan, Wisconsin, a town ** Sylvan (community), Wisconsin, an unincorporated area in the town * Sylvan Township (other) * Sylvan Lake (South Dakota) * Sylvan Pass (Wyoming), a mountain pass in Yellowstone National Park * Sylvan-Highlands, Portland, Oregon, a neighborhood of Portland, Oregon ** West Haven-Sylvan, Oregon, a neighboring unincorporated area * Sylvan Beach, New York * Penn's Sylvania ( Penn's Woods), the Province of Pennsylvania which was the kernel of the later state Canada * Sylvan Lake (Alberta) * Sylvan, a community in the municipality of North Middlesex, Ontario Arts and entertainment * Sylvan (band), a German progressive rock band * Sylvan Whittingham/Mason (songwriter) Singer, Songwriter, Photographer * Sylvan Esso, an American indie pop band * ''Sylvan'' (TV series), a Spanish animated series created by A ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Herb Conn - The Needles In Review - Needles Map
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal purposes, or for fragrances. Culinary use typically distinguishes herbs from spices. ''Herbs'' generally refers to the leafy green or flowering parts of a plant (either fresh or dried), while ''spices'' are usually dried and produced from other parts of the plant, including seeds, bark, roots and fruits. Herbs have a variety of uses including culinary, medicinal, aromatic and in some cases, spiritual. General usage of the term "herb" differs between culinary herbs and medicinal herbs; in medicinal or spiritual use, any parts of the plant might be considered as "herbs", including leaves, roots, flowers, seeds, root bark, inner bark (and cambium), resin and pericarp. The word "herb" is pronounced in Commonwealth English, but is common amo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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John Sherman (climber)
John Sherman (born 1959), nicknamed Verm (short for "Vermin") is an American climber and a pioneering boulderer. He is also a writer and photographer. He is the originator of the V-scale for grading boulder problems. Sherman was a very visible "outsider" character in the climbing world during much of the 1980s and 1990s. An early boulderer, Sherman followed the sport from the era of searching for elusive Gill arrows to the forefront of the modern climbing world. He was one of the foremost developers of Hueco Tanks Hueco Tanks is an area of low mountains and historic site in El Paso County, Texas, in the United States. It is located in a high-altitude desert basin between the Franklin Mountains to the west and the Hueco Mountains to the east. ''Hueco'' is ... bouldering with over 400 first ascents there in the 1980s and early 1990s. References * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sherman, John American rock climbers Living people 1959 births ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Free Solo Climbing
Free solo climbing, or free soloing, is a form of technical ice or rock climbing where the climbers (or ''free soloists'') climb alone without ropes, harnesses or other protective equipment, forcing them to rely entirely on their own individual preparation, strength, and skill. Free soloing is the most dangerous form of climbing, and unlike bouldering, free soloists climb above safe heights, where a fall can very likely be fatal. Though many climbers have attempted free soloing, it is considered "a niche of a niche" reserved for the sport's elite, which has led many practitioners to stardom within both the media and the sport of rock climbing. "Free solo" was originally a term of climber slang, but after the popularity of the Oscar-winning film ''Free Solo'', Merriam-Webster officially added the word to their English dictionary in September 2019. Public view Many climbing communities praise the ascents, while others have concerns regarding the danger involved and the message the ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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John Gill (climber)
John Gill (born 16 Feb 1937) is an American mathematician who has achieved recognition for his rock-climbing. Many climbers consider him the father of modern bouldering.Sherman, John (1994). ''Stone Crusade: A Historical Guide to Bouldering in America'', American Alpine Club Press. Early life and professional career As a child, Gill lived in several southern U.S. cities, including Atlanta, Georgia, where he graduated from Bass High School in 1954. He attended Georgia Tech from 1954 to 1956, and graduated from the University of Georgia with a degree in mathematics in 1958. He entered the U.S. Air Force as a second lieutenant, and also attended a special graduate meteorology program at the University of Chicago in 1958 and 1959. He was assigned to Glasgow AFB in Montana until 1962, and resigned from the USAF Reserves as a captain several years later.Ament, Pat (1998). ''John Gill:Master of Rock. Climbing Classics #2'', Stackpole Books After obtaining a master's degree in mathemati ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Henry Barber (rock Climber)
Henry Barber (born 1953 in Boston, Massachusetts) is an American rock climber and ice climber who rose to prominence in the 1970s. Known by the nickname "Hot Henry", Barber was an advocate of clean climbing, a prolific first ascenscionist and free soloist. He was one of the first American rock climbers to travel widely to climb in different countries, and was one of the first "professional" American rock climbers, supporting himself as a sales representative for outdoor equipment companies including Chouinard Equipment and Patagonia, and by giving lectures and slide shows. He was an integral member of the "Front Four" quartet of the 1970s: "Hot Henry", John Stannard, Steve Wunsch, and John Bragg. Initial climbs At age 17, Barber started climbing with the Boston chapter of the Appalachian Mountain Club. Although initially not athletically gifted, he became obsessed with the sport, and persevered, climbing as much as possible. By his own account, Henry climbed approximately ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Royal Robbins
Royal Robbins (February 3, 1935 – March 14, 2017) was one of the pioneers of American rock climbing. After learning to climb at Tahquitz Rock, he went on to make first ascents of many big wall routes in Yosemite. As an early proponent of boltless, pitonless clean climbing, he, along with Yvon Chouinard, was instrumental in changing the climbing culture of the late 1960s and early 1970s by encouraging the use and preservation of the natural features of the rock. He went on to become a well-known kayaker. Notable ascents * 1952 First free ascent (FFA) of Open Book (Tahquitz), the first route to be rated 5.9 in the Yosemite Decimal System. * 1957 '' Northwest Face'' of Half Dome, Yosemite, CA. First grade VI climb in America. With Mike Sherrick and Jerry Gallwas. * 1960 '' The Nose'', El Capitan, Yosemite, CA. With Tom Frost, Chuck Pratt, and Joe Fitschen, Second Ascent completed in 7 days * 1961 ''Salathé Wall'', El Capitan, Yosemite, CA. Hardest big wall grade VI climb in wo ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fred Beckey
Friedrich Wolfgang Beckey (14 January 1923 – 30 October 2017), known as Fred Beckey, was an American rock climber, mountaineer and book author, who in seven decades of climbing achieved hundreds of first ascents of the tallest peaks and best routes in remote corners of Alaska, the Canadian Rockies and the Pacific Northwest. Among the Fifty Classic Climbs of North America, seven were established by Beckey, often climbing with some of the best known climbers of each generation. Early years Beckey was born in 1923 near Düsseldorf, Germany to Klaus Beckey, a surgeon, and Marta Maria Beckey who was an opera singer. In 1925 economic hardships due to hyperinflation in the Weimar Republic forced his family to emigrate to the United States, settling up in Seattle, Washington. His brother, Helmut "Helmy" Beckey, was born in Seattle in 1926 and would later become Fred's frequent climbing partner. At age twelve, Fred Beckey climbed Boulder Peak in the Cascades by himself, after wandering o ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Jan And Herb Conn
Jan Conn (born 1924 ) and Herb Conn (April 16, 1920 – February 1, 2012www.findagrave.com Retrieved 10 July 2014.) were climbing and caving pioneers. They are credited with establishing many classic climbs in areas like Carderock in , in , [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Fritz Wiessner
Fritz Wiessner (February 26, 1900 – July 3, 1988) was a German American pioneer of free climbing. Born in Dresden, Germany, he immigrated to New York City in 1929 and became a U.S. citizen in 1935. In 1939, he made one of the earliest attempts to climb K2, one of the most difficult mountains in the world to climb. Early days Wiessner started climbing with his father in the Austrian Alps before World War I. At the age of 12, he climbed the Zugspitze, the highest peak in Germany. In the 1920s, he established hard climbing routes in Saxony and the Dolomites that have a present-day difficulty rating of up to 5.11. That was at a time when the hardest free climbing grade in the United States was 5.7. At the age of 25, he made the first ascent of the ''Fleischbank'' in Tyrol, which was proclaimed the hardest rock climb done at that time. Wiessner's physical qualities were atypical of mountaineering. He was tall, slope-shouldered and stocky. He had a wide and friendly gri ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Gutzon Borglum
John Gutzon de la Mothe Borglum (March 25, 1867 – March 6, 1941) was an American sculptor best known for his work on Mount Rushmore. He is also associated with various other public works of art across the U.S., including Stone Mountain in Georgia, the statue of Union General Philip Sheridan in Washington, D.C., as well as a bust of Abraham Lincoln which was exhibited in the White House by Theodore Roosevelt and which is now held in the United States Capitol crypt in Washington, D.C. Early life The son of Danish immigrants, Gutzon Borglum was born in 1867 in St. Charles in what was then Idaho Territory. Borglum was a child of Mormon polygamy. His father, Jens Møller Haugaard Børglum (1839–1909), came from the village of Børglum in northwestern Denmark. He had two wives when he lived in Idaho: Gutzon's mother, Christina Mikkelsen Børglum (1847–1871), and her sister Ida, who was Jens's first wife. Jens Borglum decided to leave Mormonism and moved to Omaha, Nebraska whe ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |