Trip Down Memory Lane – Timpanogos Cave National Monument

By coolgrandparent on September 27, 2025

As a fmaily, we went to Timpanogos Cave in 2002. Our daughter Jodi was off to her first year of college, so this was a new adventure for her, but it fit right in with our Geology theme.

The cave is located in American Fork Canyon which is north of the Prove/Orem, Utah area.

Mt Timpanogos is the prominent feature in the canyon rising to 11, 572 feet tall. It is named after the Timpanogos Native Americans that once lived in the area,

Timpanogos Cave National Monument is located on the northern slope of the mountain. The first of 3 caves was discovered in 1887 by Martin Hansen, but it was not until the other two caves were discovered, that local citizens petitioned the park service for a designation. In 1922, President Warren G. Harding, officially established the area as a monument.

There are 14 types of bats located in American Fork Canyon, but the Townsend’s Big Ear bat is the most common to inhabit the cave. Great care is taken to protect these bats from diseases.

Entrance to the cave is only with a ranger led tour. While we waited for our tour time, we got our Jr Ranger book at the visitor center and then used the displays to obtain the required information about life of creatures that live in a cave.

Taking the Jr. Ranger pledge

There is a 1.5 mile hike to the cave entrance…you have a reserved time to start hiking and check in with the ranger at the trail head. He asks if you have been in any other caves, as they try to prevent cross contamination between caves. The trail is paved but has an elevation rise of 1060 feet. You are given 1 1/2 hours to reach the cave entrance.

We grabbed one the hiking guides, as there are 16 information stops along the trail. There was even one that made bird chirps when you spun the handle

The trail has two small tunnels

Progress markers help you know how far you have hiked.

The trail passes through 6 different rock layers and a path marker lets you know when you enter a new layer.

We were pretty excited that there was a Maxfield Limestone layer, as that was our maternal grandparents name.

In honor of Uncle Jade who had to go back to work, Whitney, Wyatt, and Poppy did a Conquer the World (CTW) pose.

As we climbed up the mountain, we had amazing views of American Fork Canyon and Utah Valley

The upper trail walls are covered with small fossils from an ancient sea

The trail has 78 copper markers, each placed at 100 foot intervals. This aids with trail maintenance.

The entrance to the cave is located at 6730 feet above sea level

The zero marker was a welcome sight. The entrance to the first cave, Hansen Cave is man-made to make it easier for visitors to enter.

At the entrance, we entered what is known as the Grotto. Our Ranger was Andy. this was his first summer as a guide, but he gave an excellent tour. Andy pointed out the natural entrance high up on the ceiling. This made us grateful for the man-made one. At the Grotto is an entrance door to the cave system. This helps protect from unauthorized entry.

There were lots of interesting formations. and rock layers

There are numerous deep chasms and side coves. One side cove in Hansen Cave can flood during the spring. since we were late in the summer, there was only a small pool of water.

The path through the cave can be tricky

Timpanogos Cave National Monument actually consists of 3 caves….Hansen, Middle, and Timpanogos. They are connected by tunnels, some man-made and some natural.

The black on the wall shows where the tunnel has been widened.

Improvements have been made to the cave, such as stairs, but we still had to inch our way around formations.

Helicites ae twisted tube formations that are extremely rare and one of the reasons that the cave system was designated a national monument

The formation known as the “Heart of Timpanogos”

Several formations contain elements that turn green when a light is shone on them

A stalactite and a stalagmite trying to meet, one drip at a time, maybe in 100 years. When they meet it is called a column

There were many amazing formations, including the ghost of the cave and flowstone.

We walked through the Timpanogos Fault Line. A metal tab is used to gage movement of the fault line in the cave

Near the exit, Andy pointed out the natural entrance to Timpanogos Cave. All that was left is to walk through the final tunnel

We made it through all 3 caves and signed the visitor registry located out side the cave exit.

There is a separate exit trail that connects to the main trail. Portions of that trail have steep drops. To help with safety, chain guardrails have been installed. We could see the drill marks from where the trail was widened.