South Idaho Cave Tour Is Way Fun, And Best Way To Escape The Heat

A 27-mile family trip north of Twin Falls on Saturday was a decade in the making and turned out to be a cheap, fun way to find some much needed relief from the heat.

The last couple of weeks have been sweltering in the Magic Valley. The high Saturday (July 12) for most of southern Idaho ranged from the low to mid 90s, but it felt much warmer than that.

Around noon, we made the decision to get out of the house and head to the community of Shoshone to tour their celebrated ice caves, which was about a 40 minute drive from Twin Falls. We got there five minutes before the tour started. It's a good idea to call ahead of time to find out how late tours are going for.

Shoshone Ice Cave Tours Are Fun And A Great Way To Beat The Summer Heat

Ownership of the Shoshone Ice Caves changed hands back in 2019, according to someone we spoke with Saturday. We had a group of four of us that included my son, wife, and mother-in-law, and checked in and paid at the gift shop located next to the museum.

READ MORE: Ice Baths A Good Way To Curb Depression, Says Idaho Man

Tours usually take 30 to 45 minutes, and I saw two guides handling them. There were approximately 25 people in our group. The tour was brought to an abrupt halt on the way back after my mother-in-law's wallet fell onto the ice. The tour guide was good enough to climb down onto the ice and retrieve it; so much for flying under the radar.

The cave was incredible and a chilly 28 degrees, and featured a number of wooden walkways to navigate. If you're taking the tour with someone who struggles with mobility issues, be prepared to offer assistance. It's a pretty decent trek down to the cave on a rocky trail, and the ground is uneven at times.

I'd like to thank the staff of the caves for providing us with a fun, interesting, and pleasant 90-minute distraction from the heat. We hung out at the museum following the tour and had a cold drink.