Hiking through Timpanogos Cave offers beauty, history

(National Park Service)


15 photos
Save Story
Leer en español

Estimated read time: 3-4 minutes

This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.

AMERICAN FORK CANYON — Timpanogos Cave National Monument opens for the season Saturday and offers a fun, unique hike and tour to begin your summer.

Located in American Fork Canyon, Timpanogos Cave was first discovered by two teenage boys in 1913, according to the National Park Service.James Gough and Frank Johnson were exploring nearby Hansen Cave with their families and decided to leave the group and explore on their own. They discovered the entrance to Timpanogos Cave and the boys explored the cave until they reached a deep pit.

They told their group about the new cave and a log was brought inside to enable everyone to cross the pit, the National Park Service said. The group explored near “The Heart of Timpanogos” and when the boys went back to the cave two weeks later with lanterns and rope, they explored as far as “Father Time’s Jewel Box.”

However, a landslide occurred in the area and the entrance to Timpanogos Cave was lost. In 1921, it was rediscovered by Vearl Manwill and a few of his friends. They explored the cave, creating ladders and bridges to cross several pits. They formed the “Payson Alpine Club” and resolved to protect the cave, the National Park Service said.

Timpanogos Cave was established as a national monument in 1922, and now, public tours are offered daily from 7 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. starting Saturday through September. Tours are offered every half hour and are limited to 16 people. People must be part of a guided tour to enter the cave.

The hike to the cave entrance winds up a steep, paved trail for 1.5 miles. It’s a strenuous hike, climbing almost 1,100 feet in elevation from the parking lot to the cave entrance. However, it offers beautiful views of American Fork Canyon.

The trail to Timpanogos Cave. (Photo: National Park Service)
The trail to Timpanogos Cave. (Photo: National Park Service)

The hike to the cave entrance takes about an hour and a half so give yourself plenty of time to make sure you arrive for your cave tour 15 minutes early. The tour through Timpanogos Cave takes about an hour and is a fairly easy hike that offers beautiful views of its famous helictite and stalactite formations. Then it takes about about 45 minutes to hike back down the trail to the parking lot.

While it may be hot outside, hikers should carry jackets and flashlights with them because the temperatures inside the cave are only around 45 degrees. Hikers should be aware that you aren’t allowed to touch any of the rock walls or formations because the oil from your hands can damage the carefully-formed natural structures.

The entrance fee to the cave is $8 for adults, $6 for juniors and $4 for children. The entrance fee to American Fork Canyon is $6 per vehicle for a 3-day pass.

The cave tours are very popular and often sell out, so the National Park Service recommends buying tickets in advance. You can buy tickets online or by calling (877) 444-6777.

Directions to Timpanogos Cave:

If you are traveling along I-15, you take the Alpine-Highland exit (Exit 284) and turn east on Utah Highway 92. Then you drive about 10 miles up American Fork Canyon to the monument parking lot.

Hike to Timpanogos Cave: Moderate to difficult

Photos

Related links

Related stories

Most recent Utah stories

Related topics

UtahOutdoors
Faith Heaton Jolley

    STAY IN THE KNOW

    Get informative articles and interesting stories delivered to your inbox weekly. Subscribe to the KSL.com Trending 5.
    By subscribing, you acknowledge and agree to KSL.com's Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.

    KSL Weather Forecast