Laserguns
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Registered: May 2004
Location: Carbondale, CO
Posts: 286
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Conn Diagonal (5.7), Black Hills, South Dakota
By Dan Dewell
Photos by Andrew Burr
Exposed granite goodness in the historic needles
“We used pitons, an 80-foot rope, tennis shoes, and we didn’t have harnesses, so we tied the rope around our waists. We were scared to death,” says Jan Conn about this issue’s “Classic Climb,” Conn Diagonal, which she and her husband, Herb, put up on August 26, 1953. “The route is one of our favorites, and certainly the longest.”
This unforgettable 300-foot, three-pitch climb sits in the shade on Outer Outlet, one of two striking formations bordering the northeast side of Sylvan Lake in Custer State Park, South Dakota. Although certainly not the hardest or scariest line in the area, the Conn Diagonal stands as a bastion of exposure above the Black Hills’ dark-green, Ponderosa canopy.
Like most classic climbs, the Conn tells a history of adventure and exploration. Of the roughly 220 first ascents the Conns made in the Black Hills, many climbers regard the iconic route as one of the boldest, helping to spawn a strict ground-up, all-free, hand-drill-only ethic that has come to define the area.
The first pitch of the Conn follows a diagonalling flake system requiring stemming and laybacks, with larger gear placements (bring cams up to 4”) and a mid-height piton, to a bolted anchor. To reduce rope drag, sling horns with shoulder-length runners.
Conn Diagonal gets its strongest acclaim from its exposed ropelengths — especially the second-pitch traverse, which eats gear of all sizes. This 45-foot voyage crosses on jugs, while your feet smear over a giant vertical drop (a fall from here would leave the second hanging in the void). “We knew we were committed to the summit after the traverse [pitch two], because there was no rappelling after that point,” says Herb Conn.
Finish the second pitch in a hallway-esque slot, by building an anchor with 1/2” to 3/4” gear, and a 4” cam. From the belay, work up the hallway to a horizontal seam, where you’ll add your last piece of gear, then veer left into the bombay chimney. Belay from inside a large pothole at the top — undoubtedly one of the hairiest “book-ends” to an adventurous route established by the pioneering Conns.
> Guidebooks Recommended Climbing Routes in the Needles of Custer State Park in the Black Hills of South Dakota (1999), by John Page; A Poorperson’s Guidebook (1996), by Dingus McGee and the Last Pioneer Woman
> Guide Services Sylvan Rocks Climbing School and Guide Service; (605) 484-7585, sylvanrocks.com
> Gear Granite Sports; (605) 574-2121, granitesportsonline.com
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