SCHIESS: City of Rocks – nature’s pyramids, cathedrals and steeples

A rare cliff chipmunk scurried along a rounded granite outcropping of rocks looking for a handout; but none was to be had from me. It remained on the rock, though, even with several lizards playing tag and us rock climbing at the natural wonders of City of Rocks, south of Burley.

The City of Rocks National Reserve is a series of granite plutons shaped like pyramids, cathedrals, and steeples. Located in the Albion Mountains, City of Rocks was a stopping place for immigrants traveling the California Trail. People heading west from 1843 to 1882 were fascinated by the beautiful rock formations and signed their names on some of the huge weathered structures as they rested for the big push to their destinations.

“Camped at Steeple or Castle Rocks here is a sublime scenery to the Romantic the Rocks resemble an old City of Ruins there are thousands of names here I registered Mine on a large Rock which we named the Castle Rock hotel,” wrote Richard Augustus Keen in his diary on June 22, 1852.

The names recorded in axil grease on Register Rock are fading, but the beauty of the granite formations are not. Now a destination for recreationalists and naturalists, the City of Rocks and the nearby Castle Rocks State Park are enjoyed by thousands of visitors each year.

A rock climbing eleventh-birthday wish by a granddaughter took some of our family there to explore the natural wonders for a few days this summer. Here we hiked, watched animals and birds, enjoyed the beautiful flowers and watched her enjoy rock climbing on moderate and advanced climbs.

City of Rocks is an internationally renowned climbing destination with over 700 climbing routes on cliffs up to 600 feet high. The difficulty of these climbs range from moderate 5.6 to the multi-pitch 5.13 advanced climbs; often found side by side.

Not a rock climber, I not only watched the climbers but moved off to watch and study plants, birds and animals. This area is very unique as some scientists call it a “biological crossroads” meaning that it acts as a boundary for some animals and plants. A few plants and animals of the Great Basin like the pinyon pine and pinyon jay rarely exist farther north of City of Rocks, while others like slim larkspur and longhorn plectritis occur rarely east. This national reserve also acts as a barrier between the Colorado columbine on the east and western columbine on the west.

While watching and during our short hikes, we found an abundance of rare birds for Idaho. The beautiful red-headed Green-tailed towhee, the Juniper titmouse, Gray flycatcher and the Pinyon jay entertained us with their songs and colorful appearances. Over 750 species of plants, birds and animals have been documented at the reserve.

“We have over 22 miles of trails in the reserve and more in the state park at Castle Rock,” commented Michael Barney, a ranger at the headquarters when asked which might be the best for our group. “The Backyard Boulders Trail at Castle Rock is just two miles and you will see a lot of interesting things including the Shock and Awe Shelter that was used by prehistoric people and their pictographs along with a lot of birds and animals.”

We followed his recommendation and hiked the two mile loop and saw all the features he had mentioned. Later to finish out the day we hiked the Window Arch and the Flaming Rock trails. All were unique and interesting.

The two days were too short for us to enjoy all we wanted or could have experienced, but a young girl’s birthday wish was granted and we will be back to visit nature at its finest.