Is it OK to Climb Now?

Climbing During COVID-19 in the Black Hills

The Black Hills are a vast area of granite and limestone. We are lucky to have so many diverse climbing areas, that seeing more than three parties while you go climbing is something of an anomaly (unless you are at Wrinkled Rock, South Seas, Toy Boat area, and you probably will be if you are visiting). We never closed our climbing areas during the pandemic, we do not have ‘Climbing Hours’ at any of our areas. Some camping spots were closed down, but since May 31st everything has opened back up. We are a small community here in the Hills, our biggest town is Rapid City at a population of about 68,000 people, and the only crags close to Rapid City is Falling Rock and the VC.

So what do the locals expect from visitors who are now stumbling upon our hidden treasure? Respect please. We ask for visitors to respect the rocks, the people and the area, follow Leave No Trace ethics, try to avoid crowds, if you even stumble upon one use the 6 feet social distancing guidelines. An article we encourage visitors coming to the area and our locals who are venturing out is titled Is it OK to Climb Now? . You can follow the hyperlink for a good read, and if you have any questions feel free to reach out on our ‘Contact Us’ page.

Cheers!