Wapsipinicon State Park Caves

Useful Information

Location:	21301 County Road E34, Anamosa, IA 52205. (42.098067, -91.292460)
Open:	no restrictions. [2022]
Fee:	free. [2022]
Classification:	Karst cave
Light:	bring torch
Dimension:
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Wapsipinicon State Park, Iowa Department of Natural Resources, 21301 County Road E34, Anamosa, IA 52205, Tel: +1-319-462-2761. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1923	Wapsipinicon State Park dedicated as one of Iowa’s first state parks.

Description

The Wapsipinicon State Park is managed by the Iowa Department of Natural Resources. The park offers about 5 km of walking trails, and it is allowed to use most of them with a bike, what they call multi-use trails. The site is quite popular for this sportive side. We listed it because it has two semi-wild caves which are worth a visit. Both are not developed as show caves, but they are not wild caves either, they do not require caving gear. Normal hiking clothes, good walking shoes, and lamp are okay. Nevertheless, we recommend using a helmet with a headlamp, it's safer, and you have your hands free.

The first cave is called Horse Thief Cave, one of hundreds with that name in the U.S.A. Of course there is a legend that two horse thieves used this cave for their camp, hence the name. The cave is located in a limestone cliff. A huge portal with a wide chamber was used as shelter by the horse thieves, the floor is level cave sediment, so it is very easy to visit this cave. There is a very comfortable trail with a long staircase up the valley slope to the cave entrance. It formed inside dolomite and is the most spacious cave in the park. The layer actually has numerous caves, but the others are smaller and not open to visitors.

The second cave is called Ice Cave, because it offers cool temperatures in the heat of the summer. The floor is formed by a prominent horizontal crack in the rock. The cave passage is narrow but high enough to walk upright into the cave, the floor is formed by a hard layer of limestone and thus horizontal. It's quite interesting to see the influence of two cracks crossing on the cave formation. The cave is reached on a long staircase from the road, there is another short staircase with three steps and a railing at the cave entrance up into the cave passage. This amount of development is rare in such semi-wild caves, probably a result of the State Park regulations, or simply the typical American fear to be sued.

Both caves are located in the limestone bluffs above the forested valley of Dutch Creek, a tributary of Wapsipinicon River. Follow Upper Park Road to the turnoff where caves are signposted. The road follows Dutch Creek, Ice Cave is on the right after 150 m. After another 150 m there is a parking lot and barbeque area. We suggest parking here and then walk back to Ice Cave along the road and take the Horse Thief Trail to Horse Thief Cave. All together its only 600 m, less than 10 minutes, walk to see both caves.