Idaho · Rock climbing · Almo

The Drilling Fields

Drilling Fields in Idaho has 5 routes across 4 grades, offering sport and trad climbing.

Photo: cifraser1, CC BY 2.0 (via Flickr)

5 routes

5.8 – 5.11a

Sport · Trad

Is Drilling Fields, The open right now?

No closures listed

The National Park Service lists no closures for City of Rocks National Reserve.

As of Oct 25, 8:30 pm MDT · Source: NPS · City of Rocks National Reserve. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.

Best time to visit The Drilling Fields

Best months: April–June and August–October. Best months have typical highs of 55–85 °F, lows of 30 °F or warmer (32 °F where the station doesn't record snow), at most one snowy day and no more than 12 wet days.

Jan
35° / 16°
8 wet
Feb
39° / 19°
7 wet
Mar
48° / 27°
6 wet
Apr
55° / 33°
7 wet
May
65° / 41°
9 wet
Jun
75° / 50°
6 wet
Jul
86° / 59°
5 wet
Aug
85° / 57°
6 wet
Sep
74° / 48°
5 wet
Oct
60° / 35°
5 wet
Nov
45° / 24°
6 wet
Dec
35° / 17°
8 wet

Typical high / low (°F) and days with rain or snow, 1991–2020. Measured at Rosette, UT, 24 mi away at 5,685 ft. The station sits about 800 ft lower than this place, so expect it a little cooler here. This station doesn't record snowfall. Source: NOAA NCEI U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020.

The Drilling Fields is a climbing area within City of Rocks National Reserve in Idaho, managed by State Park and Recreation. It sits among a cluster of named climbing spots, with Drilling Fields - Lost World and Rabbit Rock both about a tenth of a mile away. The routes here run from trad climbs in the low 5.8s to sport routes at 5.11a. The area has five routes, with three in sport style and two in trad. The grades range from 5.8 to 5.11a, and the hardest climb is Pigs on a Wing, a sport route at 5.11a first climbed by Bill Boyle in 1989. Hired Gun is another sport route at 5.10a, and Garden Gnome is a trad route at 5.8. For timing, the most comfortable months are typically June and September, with highs around 75°F and 74°F and lows near 50°F. Those figures come from a weather station at Rosette, Utah, about 24 miles away at a lower elevation, so temperatures at the Drilling Fields run cooler. Nearby, the South Fork Circle Creek Trail and Bumblie Wall Trail both lie within half a mile. Independence Lakes Campground is about 10 miles away.