About River Crossing
River crossing puzzles are some of the oldest logic puzzles there are: a farmer ferrying a wolf, a goat and a cabbage was already in a puzzle collection written more than twelve hundred years ago. The idea is always the same. Everyone has to get to the other side, the boat is too small to take them all at once, and some of them must never be left together. River Crossing gathers seven of the best known, from that first farmer to shepherds and wolves, knights and squires, a night bridge with one torch and a family on a raft with a guard and a thief. Each one can be solved, and the page knows the fewest crossings it takes.
How to play River Crossing
- Everyone starts on the near bank. Tap a character on the boat’s side to put them in the boat, and tap them again to take them out. Then press Row across (or C).
- Someone who can row has to be in the boat, and it carries only as many as its seats. Each puzzle’s card lists who can row and what must never happen.
- The rules are checked after every crossing, on both banks and in the boat. If one breaks, you see what went wrong: undo that crossing or start again.
- Get everyone to the far side to solve the puzzle. The fewest crossings (or minutes, on the night bridge) earn three stars. Your progress is saved on this device only.
Tips & strategy
- Work backwards from the last crossing: who has to be on the far bank, and who in the boat, just before the end?
- Bringing someone back is not a step backwards. In nearly every puzzle the trick is the return trip.
- Count both banks before you row. A rule can break on the side you are leaving just as easily as on the side you reach.
- On the night bridge, send the two slowest hikers over together, so their long walk only counts once.
River Crossing: questions and answers
Can every puzzle be solved?
Yes. Every puzzle was solved by a program before it was added, and the page shows the fewest crossings (or minutes) it takes. Solving it in that many earns three stars.
What happens if a rule breaks?
The page says what went wrong, such as the wolf eating the sheep. Undo that crossing and try another way, or start the puzzle again.
Is my progress saved?
Yes, in your browser on this device: the puzzles you have solved, your stars and your best result for each. River Crossing runs entirely on your phone or computer.