The challenge is to help a hiker cross a river full of alligators, snakes, and piranha. The only available resources are a few planks of various lengths, and some tree stumps standing in the river bed. Unfortunately, their number and location do not enable a direct crossing. It is necessary to move and reposition planks to bridge the gaps between stumps, thus creating a maze-like path to the opposite river bank.

Each new game starts by placing one of 40 Beginner-to-Expert challenge cards on the game base to show the initial placement of planks and stumps. Solutions are included, and additional challenger cards can be downloaded from the website. A good way to learn River Crossing strategies is by playing four sample games at www.puzzles.com/rivercrossing