Timpanogos Cave National Monument
Personal Notes
This page presents our personal notes on Timpanogos Cave National Monument in American Fork Canyon in the Wasatch Mountains in Utah.
Sunday, August 3, 2008
We left our place and to to Timpanogos Cave National Monument about 7:45 a.m. We bought tickets for $7.00 each and hiked the 1.5 mile trail up to the cave entrance. It’s a steep climb, but at least on this day it was mostly in the shade and there was a slight breeze. If we had needed them, there are benches placed at strategic locations along the asphalt path. There is drinking water and restrooms at the Visitor Center, as well as restrooms near the entrance to the cave.
They run tours about every ten minutes, with 20 people on each tour. We had one guy that had to turn back almost right away because he was a bit claustrophobic. His wife and son finished the tour without him. Other than that the tour was uneventful. We got to see all of the typical cave formations and stayed cool with a constant temp in the cave of 43 degrees.
The exit to the cave is a few hundred feet from the trail up. From there you hike back down the same trail. And that's almost as hard, for me, as hiking up. I have bad knees and the constant breaking on the steep descents places a lot of stress on those joints. But I made it, just a bit more slowly than I would have liked. By the time we got back down, both the trail and the parking area were crowded.
From there we drove on up American Fork Canyon to Cascade Springs.
Sunday, August 19, 2001
There is a steep 1.5 mile trail up to the cave entrance, with a 1200 foot elevation change. Then add the distance within the cave on the tour. The trail is an asphalt path to the top. There are restrooms at the Visitor's Center and near the cave entrance.
The trail provides spectacular views of the canyon below. We would rate this a moderate to strenuous climb.
The tour costs $6.00 per person. There is a gift shop, snack bar, and information at the Visitor Center. There is also an entrance fee to the canyon, unless you're only touring the cave. The hike and the tour took about 2 hours round trip. However, the Park Service recommends 3 hours.
