The Niter Ice Cave is a geological feature approximately 3 miles south of the small southeastern Idaho town of

Grace, Idaho Grace is a city in Caribou County, Idaho, Caribou County, Idaho, United States. The population was 920 at the 2010 United States Census, 2020 census. History The area of Grace was once inhabited by the Shoshone Indians. The Oregon Trail passed ...

History

The most probable explanation for the Niter Ice Cave is that thousands of years ago, a volcanic eruption formed a huge

lava tube A lava tube, more rarely called a pyroduct, is a 'roofed conduit through which molten lava travels away from its vent'. If lava in the tube drains out, it will leave an empty cave. Lava tubes are common in low-viscosity volcanic systems. La ...

that eventually cooled to form this

cave Caves or caverns are natural voids under the Earth's Planetary surface, surface. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. Exogene caves are smaller openings that extend a relatively short distance undergrou ...

. Early settlers in the area found the cave to be a place to store their food and collect ice all year around. It has been a picnic spot and recreation site. There have been explicit drawings and

graffiti Graffiti (singular ''graffiti'', or ''graffito'' only in graffiti archeology) is writing or drawings made on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from simple written "monikers" to elabor ...

on, around, and in the ice cave.Kate DuHadway
Cool it: Niter Ice Cave, a geologic wonder in Grace, Idaho.
The Herald Journal, Logan Utah. 3 September 2011. retrieved 17 January 2016.

References

External links

Inside Niter Ice Cave
360 panoramas website, G. Donald Bain, 26 July 26, 2014, retrieved 17 January 2016.

untraveledroad.com, not dated, retrieved 17 January 2016.

Showcaves.com, Jochen Duckeck. undated, retrieved 17 January 2016.
Photos and info
Landforms of Caribou County, Idaho Caves of Idaho Lava tubes Ice caves {{US-cave-stub