Near Rexburg
The Civil Defense Caves
The Civil Defense Caves or Cave is a great place for a group activity. It is a giant lava tube from an old volcano. It is about 45 45-minute drive from Rexburg. Bring warm clothes, a flashlight, good shoes, and a car that can handle rocky and bumpy terrain. It is open for access from May through December. And one of my favorite places to take people if they haven’t been to a cave before. Plan a trip today!
Civil Defense Caves
Going to the civil defense caves is so much fun. I have done it several times, but it is important to make sure to have a car that can take rocky and bumpy trails because the trail isn’t very smooth. We took a Subaru Crosstrek, and it went really well, but don’t bring an Impala.
Directions
To get to the Civil Defense Caves, you’re going to head out toward the sand dunes and past them. You will then keep going straight until you see a cement square with an arrow pointing to a red dirt trail. You will then take the red dirt trail for a while until you see a fork in the trail, and there will be another cement square with an arrow pointing you to the left, which will take you down the most bumpy part of the road. But eventually, on the right, you will have reached the Civil Defense Caves. And when you first walk up, you will see an old, cement table sort of looking thing with a very worn-out description that is very hard to read. But you will then see a trail down and down to the right.
You will see a huge crack in the ground when you first walk up like someone sliced a hole in the ground. Once you go inside, you will see how large the old lava tube is. I would say it is around 15 to 30 feet tall and about the same wide, depending on where you are. And that is why it is great for beginners, because you don’t have to squeeze through any small cracks or gaps.
This is a great activity for a group. A lot of times on a date, women get a little spooked. So I wouldn’t recommend this as a first date. However, as a group activity, you can play games in the dark, such as shark and minnows, but be sure to watch out for tripping hazards.
People will go and cut open a glow stick and throw them at each other and play like capture the flag or other games. I personally have never done this, but I have wanted to do this. I am planning on doing it sometime in the future. Also, there are tons of graffiti in this cave, which many people say ruins the cave, and I’m not sure of the legality of people putting graffiti in the cave, but I personally think it makes the cave unique and shows the past generations of adventurers near Rexburg, Idaho.
Civil Defense Caves Photos
