Organ Needle (8,982 feet) is the highest point in the Organ Mountains National Monument. Anybody who visits Las Cruces must hike the Needle, as it is the crown jewel of the park. It is a steep social trail that includes one short 4th class section just below the summit. There are ropes on this section, lowering the technicality. The crux of the Needle is the route-finding, as the trail often gets overgrown and it is easy to loose sight of where to go. Moreover, there are quite a few cacti so it is also very easy to get into some pretty heinous terrain. There is a register on the summit block so run up, touch the register, enjoy the view, and run down as quickly as possible. It's recommended to start early on this one, as the desert heats up fast! There are existing Strava segments for the ascent/ descent. To claim an FKT you must beat the current times on Strava. Have fun!
