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Paramount Rock

Idaho > E Idaho

Description

Sunny during the morning, shady in the afternoon. This is often a windy area. All routes except Fly by Night, Positively Negative and Spraypaint can be done with 50 Meter rope.

Getting There

Drive past Heise up Kelly Canyon Road. After road turns sharply left, about 200 yards up the road there is a small parking area to the left of the road, or a larger lot 1000 yards further up the road, before the second cattle guard. Hike up the hill on the left of the road. Wall is visible from the road.

Routes from Left to Right

Easy 5th 1+ 3 I 5 M 1c
 1
● Skyline Traverse
Trad 3 pitches
V4 6B
 3
● Lower Rainbow
Boulder
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b
 2
● Slow and Easy
Trad
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a
 39
● Arial Boundaries
Sport
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a
 18
● Aerial-Fantasy
Sport
5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a
 24
● Fantasy
Sport
5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b
 25
● Thin Red Line
Sport
5.8+ 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
 10
● Chuck & Jed's Excellent Adventure
Trad, Sport
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a
 25
● Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood
Sport
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a
 7
● Excitations
Trad, Sport
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
 3
● Wild Thing
Trad, Sport
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c
 60
● Fly By Night
Sport
5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b
 10
● Take the Heise Plunge
Sport
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a
 19
● Farr Side
Sport
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a
 30
● Dark Side
Sport
5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b
 16
● Spraypaint
Sport
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c
 10
● Positively Negative
Sport
Route Name Location Star Rating Difficulty Date
● Skyline Traverse
 1
Easy 5th 1+ 3 I 5 M 1c Trad 3 pitches
● Lower Rainbow
 3
V4 6B Boulder
● Slow and Easy
 2
5.7 5a 15 V+ 13 MVS 4b Trad
● Arial Boundaries
 39
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a Sport
● Aerial-Fantasy
 18
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a Sport
● Fantasy
 24
5.9+ 5c 17 VI 17 E1 5a Sport
● Thin Red Line
 25
5.10b 6a+ 19 VII- 19 E2 5b Sport
● Chuck & Jed's Excellent Adv…
 10
5.8+ 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Trad, Sport
● Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood
 25
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a Sport
● Excitations
 7
5.9 5c 17 VI 17 HVS 5a Trad, Sport
● Wild Thing
 3
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Trad, Sport
● Fly By Night
 60
5.8 5b 16 VI- 15 HVS 4c Sport
● Take the Heise Plunge
 10
5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b Sport
● Farr Side
 19
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a Sport
● Dark Side
 30
5.10a 6a 18 VI+ 18 E1 5a Sport
● Spraypaint
 16
5.10d 6b+ 21 VII+ 21 E3 5b Sport
● Positively Negative
 10
5.11b 6c 23 VIII- 23 E3 5c Sport

Photos [Hide ALL Photos]

1 - Arial Boundaries (5.9)<br> 2 - Aerial-Fantasy (5.9)<br> 3 - Fantasy (5.9+)<br> 4 - Thin Red Line (5.10b)<br> 5 - Chuck & Jed's Excellent Adventure (5.8+)<br> 6 - Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood (5.9)<br> 7 - Excitations (5.9+)<br> 8 - Wild Thing (5.8)<br> 9 - Fly By Night (5.8)<br> 10 - Take the Heise Plunge (5.10d)<br> 11 - Farr Side (5.10a)<br> 12 - Dark Side (5.10a)<br> 13 - Spraypaint (5.10d)<br> 14 - Positively Negative (5.11b)<br> <br> <br> <br>
[Hide Photo] 1 - Arial Boundaries (5.9) 2 - Aerial-Fantasy (5.9) 3 - Fantasy (5.9+) 4 - Thin Red Line (5.10b) 5 - Chuck & Jed's Excellent Adventure (5.8+) 6 - Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood (5.9) 7 - Excitatio…
1 - Arial Boundaries (5.9)<br> 2 - Aerial-Fantasy (5.9)<br> 3 - Fantasy (5.9+)<br> 4 - Thin Red Line (5.10b)<br> 6 - Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood (5.9)<br> 7 - Excitations (5.9+)<br> 8 - Wild Thing (5.8)
[Hide Photo] 1 - Arial Boundaries (5.9) 2 - Aerial-Fantasy (5.9) 3 - Fantasy (5.9+) 4 - Thin Red Line (5.10b) 6 - Mr. Rodger's Neighborhood (5.9) 7 - Excitations (5.9+) 8 - Wild Thing (5.8)
view from the road, zoom in for a climber
[Hide Photo] view from the road, zoom in for a climber

Comments [Hide ALL Comments]

Ty Madsen
[Hide Comment] I have not climbed very many of these routes, so if anyone has any better information regarding the area/routes feel free to let me know, or post something, thanks! Jun 4, 2010
Justin Brunson
Tacoma WA
[Hide Comment] There's a new-looking belay station about 10 feet to the left of Fly By Night. I assume someone has climbed that crack line on gear. Anybody know anything about it? Mar 3, 2011
Justin Brunson
Tacoma WA
[Hide Comment] I checked out the route mentioned in my previous comment today. It's scary. very dirty and chossy at the top. good gear to about half height and then nothing. i ended up bailing onto the bolt line because it just wasn't worth it. Mar 4, 2011
Bruce C. Anderson
Kuna, Id
[Hide Comment] The parking area is a more or less flat depression on the north side of the road. The trail starts just past the north east end of the parking area. Last year there was a metal fence post at the beginning of the trail. There used to be a sign on it but the sign went missing.
The first forty feet or so has ball bearing like gravel and it's easy to lose your footing if you are not careful. Rumor has it that a prominent local climber slipped on that section injuring his ankle and ruining his climbing career. Jun 27, 2011
Rwwon ru
[Hide Comment] I was climbing that shale the first few times and it was a pain. Then I realized instead of parking on the East side of paramount, you park on the South side, or directly below it and follow a trail that wraps around to the southern most climbs... A lot easier this way.

I haven't been to too many places outside of Utah and Idaho for climbing, but I have noticed the bolts on most of these routes are quite a bit more spread out than a lot of the newer, surrounding areas.

The rock is nice to climb on here and its good to get on some longer routes! Jul 27, 2012
Steven Reiser
[Hide Comment] I worked at Idaho National Lab in the 1980s and 1990s. A friend, Chuck Odette and I put in a lot of bolts at Paramount Rock and I was also in charge of getting a better trail to the base of the climbs - no idea how that is doing as I moved out of Southeast Idaho in 1999. I remember distinctly bolting the route on the far right of the wall as it's primarily face climbing. the '80s was primarily development of new routes as the area had little or no previous climbing history. Paramount is in a guidebook I had on sale in Idaho Falls, "Southeast Idaho Climber's Guide", in the 1990s and I have no idea if it exists or someone has a better guide. Jan 27, 2020
Irreverent Bastard
Rexburg
[Hide Comment] Just did some trail improvement in a section where it had eroded away pretty bad. The erosion was due to climbers taking the more direct path down rather than staying on the trail.
  • *PLEASE FOLLOW THE TRAIL**
Do what you can to maintain the quality of the places we climb. Move a rock or a dead limb every once in a while. Sep 26, 2021
Benjamin Eaton
Sandy, UT
[Hide Comment] When you've climbed at one crag too many times, you start to make up crazy challenges to spice things up...like the Paramount Sweep: youtu.be/Lxedx-gM-ig Oct 20, 2023