Needles Highway, SD-87

Driving

by Plot Along: Heartland

The Needles Highway is 14 miles of South Dakota Route 87 winding through the granite spires of Custer State Park in the Black Hills. When Peter Norbeck laid it out in 1922, engineers told him it couldn't be built. He walked and rode the route on horseback and routed it deliberately to thread between the rock formations rather than blast straight through them. The result is a road that squeezes through one-lane tunnels barely wider than a car and curls beneath the slender granite "needles" that give it its name.

The drive climbs past the Cathedral Spires and the Needles Eye Tunnel, just 8 feet 4 inches wide, to Sylvan Lake, ringed by rounded granite and pine at the north end.

The highway is seasonal, usually open mid-April through October and closed by snow in winter. A Custer State Park entrance license is required. Big RVs and trailers won't fit the tunnels, so check the posted clearances before you commit.

Learn more: en.wikipedia.org

SD-87 South (US-16A Junction)
The southern start of the Needles Highway, where SD-87 branches off US-16A in Custer State Park near Legion Lake. The climb into the granite begins here.
Iron Creek Tunnel
A one-lane tunnel blasted through solid granite. The first of the squeeze-through tunnels, with the rock walls close enough to touch from the window.
Cathedral Spires Trailhead
The trailhead and parking pullout off SD-87 for the Cathedral Spires, a cluster of towering granite pinnacles rising out of the pines. The most dramatic of the Needles formations, reached by a short hike from here.
Needles Eye Tunnel
The signature tunnel, just 8 feet 4 inches wide, framed beside the slender 'eye of the needle' rock with its narrow slot worn through the granite.
Sylvan Lake
The northern end of the drive, where SD-87 reaches Sylvan Lake at the day-use area, store, and lodge. The lake is ringed by rounded granite domes and pine and is a classic Black Hills swimming and paddling spot.

SD-87 South (US-16A Junction)

Iron Creek Tunnel

Cathedral Spires Trailhead

Needles Eye Tunnel

Sylvan Lake