Brain Teasers
Medium
3 min
A farmer has a wolf, a goat and a basket of cabbage. He must cross a river using a boat that can carry himself and only one of the three items. He cannot leave the wolf alone with the goat or the goat alone with the cabbage. How can he transport everything safely?
Hint
The goat is the key item that must move more than once.
Answer
Take the goat across first, return alone, take the wolf across, bring the goat back, take the cabbage across, return alone, then take the goat across.
Explanation
The goat must be moved first because leaving it with either the wolf or cabbage causes a problem. After taking the wolf across, the farmer must bring the goat back before taking the cabbage.
Step-by-Step Solution
1. Take goat across.
2. Return alone.
3. Take wolf across.
4. Bring goat back.
5. Take cabbage across.
6. Return alone.
7. Take goat across.
2. Return alone.
3. Take wolf across.
4. Bring goat back.
5. Take cabbage across.
6. Return alone.
7. Take goat across.