40 Horse Cave - Cave and Hike near Firth, Idaho
Wolverine Rd, Firth, ID 83236, USA,Firth,Idaho
43.28154812835166, -111.94852441549301
11.9 miles E of Firth, Idaho
Address: Wolverine Rd, Firth, ID 83236, USA
GPS: 43°16'53.6"N 111°56'54.7"W
Maps | Directions
State: Idaho
Trail Length: 0.18 miles
Trail Type: Out & Back
Hike Difficulty: Intermediate
Trails/Routes: 0.1 mi

Cave and Hike

The naming of the cave comes from a story of two men who were caught in a bad storm. Upon hiking, these two guys were able to find the cave. One of them commented to the other, "This cave could hold about 40 horses." Another legend tells of a theif that hid 40 horses in the cave to avoid capture. Either way, there's no doubt that 40 horses would fit in the cave.

The hike up to the cave is steep. Elevation gain may only be about 100 feet but even the longest trail is still just under 500 feet (0.1 mile) to the cave. Once you find the trailhead, it's really easy to find. You'll just hike uphill until you come to a large opening in the mountain. The shorter trail has a lot more shale and is a pretty difficult scramble. The longer trail is still steep and difficult but there is much less shale.

Flashlights aren't required, as the cave is only about 50 feet deep. There are a few corners of the cave that are a little more fun to explore with a flashlight.

At the bottom of the trail is a culvert and when the water is higher, it's a fun place to splash around after the hike. You'll see a trail in the willows on the SouthEast side of the road near the culvert. If you follow that trail only about 100 feet of easy hiking, you'll find a smaller cave.

More Information

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Be courteous, informed, and prepared. Read trailhead guidelines, stay on the trail, and don't feed the wildlife.

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  1. Plan Ahead and Prepare
  2. Travel & camp on durable surfaces
  3. Dispose of waste properly
  4. Leave what you find
  5. Minimize campfire impacts
  6. Respect wildlife
  7. Be considerate of other visitors

Directions

From Firth, Idaho

  1. Head southwest on US-91 S/Main St toward W Center St
    Continue to follow US-91 S
    (0.4 mi)
  2. Turn left onto N 550 E/Idaho Rd (1.2 mi)
  3. Turn left onto E 600 N/Wolverine Rd
    Continue to follow Wolverine Rd
    Destination will be on the left
    (13.9 mi)
or

Take Wolverine Road up into Wolverine Canyon. Once you enter the canyon, it's 2.6 miles to the parking lot. You'll see a road/pullout to the left after 2 miles. When you near the cave, you'll be able to see it up the hill on your left as you go over a culvert where the creek goes under the road. The trailheads are by the culvert and the parking lot is on the left just around the bend.

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Guest Review/Comments

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Shelby

2/1/23 9:09 pm
This place is a part of my family-owned ranch. It has been in my family for generations. It is so cool to think that I am a part of a worldwide known area.
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Brenda Denney

4/20/21 1:00 pm
Wolverine Rd was closed to car traffic. We could have walked to the trailhead but didn't know how far it would be.
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38.2K

endovereric

4/21/21 9:05 am
Sounds like a seasonal closure still in effect. Was it closed as soon as you start going into the canyon?
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endovereric

6/6/17 11:26 am 6/3/17
Wolverine canyon is beautiful and the rock formations are really cool. We took the shale trail up. It was really steep and my wife and kids slipped around a lot. Even with good hiking boots, I slipped quite a bit as well. We played in the cave for at least 30 minutes and the kids could have stayed quite a bit longer in the different parts of the cave. We took the West trail down and it was much easier. There was still some slipping but much more doable and much of the trail wasn't bad at all. I was amazed to realize how short it was because of the difficulty of the climb. We saw some rock chucks and the kids enjoyed playing in the creek. The cave and trail on the other side was fun as well.
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Looking Out The Cave courtesy of endovereric Looking Out The Cave courtesy of endovereric↗
40 Horse Cave From The Road courtesy of endovereric 40 Horse Cave From The Road courtesy of endovereric↗ Down The Trail From The Cave courtesy of endovereric Down The Trail From The Cave courtesy of endovereric↗ From Less Difficult Trail To The Cave courtesy of endovereric From Less Difficult Trail To The Cave courtesy of endovereric↗ Looking Into 40 Horse Cave courtesy of endovereric Looking Into 40 Horse Cave courtesy of endovereric↗

Trails

Distance ?

372 feet

Elevation Gain ?

-152 feet

Real Ascent ?

0 feet

Real Descent ?

152 feet

Avg Grade (-24°)

-45%

Grade (-35° to -6°)

-70% to -10%

Distance ?

406 feet

Elevation Gain ?

-131 feet

Real Ascent ?

0 feet

Real Descent ?

131 feet

Avg Grade (-19°)

-34%

Grade (-28° to -7°)

-53% to -12%

Elevation differences are scaled for emphasis. While the numbers are accurate, the cut-away shown here is not to scale.

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