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The scenario you've described is a variation of a classic river crossing puzzle. Here's a step-by-step solution to get the wolf, sheep, and rutabaga across the river safely:
First Trip: Take the sheep across the river and leave it on the other side. Return alone to the original side.
Current status: Sheep is on the opposite side. Wolf and rutabaga are on the original side.
Second Trip: Take the rutabaga across the river. Leave the rutabaga on the other side, but take the sheep back with you to the original side.
Current status: Rutabaga is on the opposite side. Wolf and sheep are on the original side.
Third Trip: Take the wolf across the river and leave it there. Return alone to the original side.
Current status: Wolf and rutabaga are on the opposite side. Sheep is on the original side.
Fourth Trip: Finally, take the sheep across the river.
Result: All three (wolf, sheep, and rutabaga) are on the opposite side of the river safely.
This solution ensures that at no point are the sheep and rutabaga left alone together (since the rutabaga would eat the sheep), nor are the wolf and rutabaga left alone (since the wolf would eat the rutabaga). Likewise, the sheep and wolf are not left alone without the rutabaga, which would result in the sheep eating the wolf.