A farmer has a wolf, a goat, and a cabbage. He needs to cross a river in a boat that can only hold himself and one item at a time. If left unattended, the wolf eats the goat, and the goat eats the cabbage. How many one-way river crossings must the farmer make in total to transport all three safely?
7
1: Farmer takes goat across (1). 2: Farmer returns alone (2). 3: Farmer takes wolf across (3). 4: Farmer brings goat back (4). 5: Farmer takes cabbage across (5). 6: Farmer returns alone (6). 7: Farmer takes goat across again (7). Total one-way crossings is 7.
About this riddle
Logic riddles give you a few facts and ask what must be true. List what you know, cross out what cannot be, and see what is left.
Difficulty: Medium. More like this: Logic riddles with answers or try Einstein's Logic Grid for a different kind of puzzle.
More logic riddles
I am a five-digit number. My first digit is half of my second. My third digit is the sum of the first two. My fourth digit is equal to my second digit minus one. My fifth digit is triple my first digit. If all my digits are unique, what number am I?
I am hot and sweet and topped with marshmallows, and I warm you on a cold day. What am I?
Four guards protect a castle gate, stationed at posts A, B, C, and D in a straight line. Guard A is not next to Guard C. Guard B is stationed somewhere to the right of Guard A. Guard D is at the far right end (post D). Where is Guard C stationed?
You have 7 identical-looking coins, but 1 is a heavier counterfeit. What is the minimum number of balance scale weighings required to guarantee identifying the counterfeit coin?
I grow smaller the more I heavy I become, and I disappear entirely when my work is finished. What am I?
In a race of four turtles—Fast, Flash, Swift, and Dash—none finished in the same position they started, and no two turtles finished tied. - Fast did not finish first. - Flash finished immediately ahead of Swift. - Dash finished behind Fast. In what position did Flash finish?