Thursday was a gray, windy and rainy day - not a perfect day for a hike. So instead, we drove about 90 minutes to the Gifford Pinchot National Forest to explore the Ape Cave. There are no apes, but this is how the website describes it:
Ape Cave was discovered in 1947 by a logger named Lawrence Johnson. However, the cave was not explored until the early 1950's when a scout troop, led by Harry Reese, lowered a team of scouts down a 17-foot overhang to the cave floor. Leaving footprints where no one ever had, these explorers were able to travel through a pristine lava tube full of fragile formations. Ape Cave was named by the Scout Troop in honor of their sponsor, the St. Helens Apes. This local group was made up primarily of foresters. The sponsor’s name, St. Helens Apes, may have come from an old term used for foresters in the area, "brush apes," or from the legend of Bigfoot.
And this is how the cave is described:
Ape Cave sits among a mixed-species forest stand. A short, paved trail leads from the newly remodeled and accessible parking lot with visitor center and facilities to the caves lower entrance and interpretive area. The trail continues on to the upper entrance, though it becomes more steep and rough.
At more than 13,000 feet long, the cave is the third longest lava tube in North America. The upper cave is described as more difficult, while the lower cave is easier to walk. We chose the lower cave. We also knew going in that it is 42 degrees year round and wet year round, as well as completely dark. So it was an interesting adventure and it was not a difficult hike. And because of the darkness, my camera phone did not take the greatest photos.
Our drive there took us along the Lewis River which has been dammed in several locations. We stopped briefly in the rain at Yale Reservoir Park (one of several recreational areas maintained by Pacific Corp., the company that generates electricity on the river).
When we arrived, the ranger station was closed for the season. There is good road all the way there, plenty of parking and two buildings with two toilets in each building. We were surprised by the fact that there were a dozen or so cars there. The car parked next to us was a family from Stuttgart, Germany - dad, mom and a one year old child.
There are other places in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument that we will want to explore on future trips.
We followed directions and cleaned our shoes before entering and after leaving the cave.
Just before entering the upper cave, there is a nice covered info spot with four large posters of information about the cave.
And then we entered the lower cave. We started by going down a couple of stair cases.
And then it got dark.
It was as advertised, completely dark. We each had a primary and a back up light - unlike some of the hikers we saw who had nothing more than the flashlight on their cellphones.
Water was constantly dripping from the ceiling of the cave, so we were both glad of rain coats. And there was a stream of water on the floor of the cave - so we needed to watch where we were going. On the way in, we took our time, carefully picking the spots to place our feet and spent close to an hour covering the three quarters of a mile to the end. We took only about a half hour on the way out. We met many people in the cave, including a group of elementary school students. Many people were serious hikers who prepared with waterproof boots, raingear, headlamps and handheld lanterns. Some, as mentioned above, were not. But all made it safely back to the entrance.
If time and weather allow, I want to return to explore some of the other locations in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.
Ape Cave was discovered in 1947 by a logger named Lawrence Johnson. However, the cave was not explored until the early 1950's when a scout troop, led by Harry Reese, lowered a team of scouts down a 17-foot overhang to the cave floor. Leaving footprints where no one ever had, these explorers were able to travel through a pristine lava tube full of fragile formations. Ape Cave was named by the Scout Troop in honor of their sponsor, the St. Helens Apes. This local group was made up primarily of foresters. The sponsor’s name, St. Helens Apes, may have come from an old term used for foresters in the area, "brush apes," or from the legend of Bigfoot.
And this is how the cave is described:
Ape Cave sits among a mixed-species forest stand. A short, paved trail leads from the newly remodeled and accessible parking lot with visitor center and facilities to the caves lower entrance and interpretive area. The trail continues on to the upper entrance, though it becomes more steep and rough.
At more than 13,000 feet long, the cave is the third longest lava tube in North America. The upper cave is described as more difficult, while the lower cave is easier to walk. We chose the lower cave. We also knew going in that it is 42 degrees year round and wet year round, as well as completely dark. So it was an interesting adventure and it was not a difficult hike. And because of the darkness, my camera phone did not take the greatest photos.
Our drive there took us along the Lewis River which has been dammed in several locations. We stopped briefly in the rain at Yale Reservoir Park (one of several recreational areas maintained by Pacific Corp., the company that generates electricity on the river).
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| Not sure why, but while shooting photo through the windshield, my camera did this split screen thing |
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| Sorry about the blur, but again taken from inside the car while it was raining |
When we arrived, the ranger station was closed for the season. There is good road all the way there, plenty of parking and two buildings with two toilets in each building. We were surprised by the fact that there were a dozen or so cars there. The car parked next to us was a family from Stuttgart, Germany - dad, mom and a one year old child.
There are other places in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument that we will want to explore on future trips.
We followed directions and cleaned our shoes before entering and after leaving the cave.
Just before entering the upper cave, there is a nice covered info spot with four large posters of information about the cave.
And then we entered the lower cave. We started by going down a couple of stair cases.
And then it got dark.
It was as advertised, completely dark. We each had a primary and a back up light - unlike some of the hikers we saw who had nothing more than the flashlight on their cellphones.
Water was constantly dripping from the ceiling of the cave, so we were both glad of rain coats. And there was a stream of water on the floor of the cave - so we needed to watch where we were going. On the way in, we took our time, carefully picking the spots to place our feet and spent close to an hour covering the three quarters of a mile to the end. We took only about a half hour on the way out. We met many people in the cave, including a group of elementary school students. Many people were serious hikers who prepared with waterproof boots, raingear, headlamps and handheld lanterns. Some, as mentioned above, were not. But all made it safely back to the entrance.
On the drive in and out, we crossed over what we learned was the Swift Reservoir which has a large hydroelectric plant at the downstream end. It is an unusual reservoir, in that it has a very long dam on the side to create the body of water, rather than just a dam across a valley.
If time and weather allow, I want to return to explore some of the other locations in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest and Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument.
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