POCATELLO, Idaho — With the exception of electric lights and a few other amenities, time truly stands still in Bear Lake County's Minnetonka Cave.
Located in Cache National Forest on the Utah border, near Paris, Idaho, thousands of stalagmites and stalactites that fill the chambers grow only about a half-inch every 100 years.
Discovered in 1906 by a grouse hunter, the largest limestone cave in Idaho has something for people of all ages. Adults can ponder the geological features while their children's imaginations go wild listening to the tour guide's stories which turn rock formations into popular fictional characters like Kermit the Frog and the Seven Dwarfs.
Minnetonka Cave was originally called "Porcupine Cave," because a group of Boy Scouts found the remains of a porcupine in one of the chambers in 1912 while spelunking, said tour guide Dellene Rigby.
The name stuck until a local church leader, Roy Welker, renamed the cave Minnetonka, a Native American word for "falling water," because of the dripping ceiling.
It was largely undisturbed until 1938, when Bear Lake County, the U.S. Forest Service and the Depression-era Works Progress Administration began to develop it for visitors. This required enlarging the cave's entrance, building trails, adding lights, handrails and steps at a cost of about $17,000, a substantial sum in the late '30s.
Tours of Minnetonka Cave were given during the summer of 1941, but due to World War II, it was then closed until 1947. Scenic Canyons Recreational Services currently operates the cave through a contract with the Forest Service.
Geologists believe the cave is an ancient subterranean stream, which drained into the St. Charles Canyon. Because of its past, fossils of extinct aquatic life can be found throughout its walls. More than 1,800 feet of trails and stairs have been built in the cave, which is known to be at least 3,000 feet in length.
The elevation at the cave's entrance is about 7,700 feet. People who visit the cave might want to bring a jacket, because the temperature inside is always a cool but steady 40 degrees Fahrenheit.
Campgrounds are located within a few miles of the cave for visitors who want to stay overnight. Admission for adults is $5; children ages 6-15, $4; children age 5 and under are admitted free; family passes (immediate family), $20; group passes (more than 30) are 10 percentoff. Minnetonka Cave is open through Labor Day. Tours are offered daily from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. and last about 90 minutes. For more information call 435-245-4422.