Trip Reports

We went through the lower cave with my 6 year old granddaughter. There was some standing water in areas of the trail. You can do this trail with hand held flashlights but your best bet is to use LED headlamps. There was also evidence of recent rockfalls in the cave so be aware of this and encourage young kids to keep their voices down. Take jackets, at first the cool damp air feels wonderful on a hot summer day but it does get very chilly before you are through. Be on the look-out for a small mini cave in the left side of the tunnel that has visible pyrite deposits in it, beautiful to see.

We started out the week planning on a 3-day backpacking trip up the Hoh River. However, around Wednesday the forecast changed from partly cloudy all weekend to rain-snow mix all weekend. The muddy/wet trip didn't sound too good (especially since we were going to take a friend that had never backpacked before and didn't want her to have a bad time), so we were scrambling for somewhere to go this weekend. By Thursday, we had decided to "bag" the backpacking idea and started looking for day hikes we could do to beat the weather. I remembered Ape Caves and thought it might be fun so we headed out Saturday morning to do some spelunking.
The drive to the caves is very easy and paved the whole way. The trail head was busy when we arrived around noon (very popular hike for families with kids). We ate lunch out of the back of the car and then set-off to check out the caves. We decided to hike the 1.3 miles to the upper cave entrance and hike through the cave "backwards" to the lower cave. There is a very slight upward incline to the trail and it is very well marked with blue tape and diamonds so you don't lose your way. There was still quite a bit of snow patches, but nothing to worry about.
Once inside the cave it was pitch black. Make sure you take a good head lamp with fresh batteries. I really recommend a head-lamp over a flashlight or lantern because there are several sections that you need your hands to climb over rocks and it was nice to have hands-free light. The hike through the caves was amazing and fun. My 9-year old boy had decided this is his new favorite hike. He kept making Lord of the Rings jokes the whole time and it was pretty funny listening to him talk about protecting his precious from fat little hobbits.
I think hiking from upper to lower is harder than doing it the other way around, but the advantage is most people do it the other way so it was a way for us to have a little solitude in what is an otherwise busy trail/cave. Had a great time and would do it again. Make sure you take a waterproof jacket (dress warm because the temp. in the cave is always in the 40's) and waterproof shoes because the ground water is constantly dripping down into the caves and creates some pretty big puddles inside. I can picture someone in the wrong clothing being pretty miserable on that hike.

It was a warm Sunday, and a cool cave just sounded like a great idea. The cave itself was dark and cold, so a flash light and warm clothing are a must. The lower cave was not much of a challenge, but it started to get very narrow, to the point where we had to crawl through, and we decided to turn around at that point. After that, we wanted to try the upper cave, and that was a bit more of a challenge. We had to climb over many rocks, and there were many puddles, so if you don't want your feet getting wet, you had to watch where you're stepping. The dark cave had some openings where some skylight came through, that was absolutely beautiful. After we got out of the cave, the hike back to the car was quite beautiful. It was warm and sunny and there was some snow. Although we encountered some mud puddles, we didn't really care much. Overall, there were many families there, but I wouldn't say it was overcrowded. All in all it was a great hiking/caving experience and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested.

There is a "river" on the return trail coming back from the upper entrance to the caves. We were warned, and had a 7 year old and an 11 year old with us, who were not well equipped or dressed for the day. They were in fact only told to dress for the rain, in which one interpreted this as wearing "ug" boots (Ha!) and the other converse shoes (HaHa!)

 When you're taking small children on activities like this, you have to decide what kind of trip you want to have. I opted for "life's little lessons" over a walk of natural wonder. Needless to say we all returned alive, soar, and soaked. The fanciest gear we had with us were a couple of headlamps for the adults, the kids each got a simple dollar store flashlight. Their range of emotions went all up and down from excited to miserable, from brave to scared and back again. It was the perfect outing.

The stairs at the lower entrance had some snow still, and a rope was in place to help people get down into the cave. There seemed like more drips this time than previous times I've done the caves, most likely due to the thaw. There were large ponds underground, but were easy to avoid. Many, many slow down points for children, as an adult would have to position themselves to help a child over some areas. And if you've ever done the caves you know what I mean when I refer to "the wall", which took both adults to get the kids across. The hike from the upper entrance was still covered with snow, a full leg deep in some areas, but if you stayed within the footprints of others you didn't go down into it too much. The "river" that has to be forded is pretty thin, maybe requiring less than a dozen steps to cross getting wet up to the knee if you find a shallow spot to cross. With having the kids I'd say 4-5 hours for the total trip away from the car.

 The parking lot was also closed due to snow I think, so we parked at a lower parking lot and hiked the one mile in towards the caves. There were a few other groups also hiking but not as many as I've seen in the past. The group with the 6 year old chickened out after the first rock pile and went back.

My wish list for things I didn't have for today's hike: towels in waterproof bags, water resistant clothing including hats for everyone, head lamps for everyone, snow shoes, and hiking sticks.

I think the lesson was learned today, and next time the girls will be better prepared for the random adventures their dad takes them on.

We picked a soggy,soggy day for our adventure. For a bit of extra adventure, we parked at the sno park and trekked overland with a GPS around a half mile to the lower entrance of the cave.
We paused is the information shelter for a quick snack and to stash our snowshoes in our packs.

The stairs leading into the cave are completely snow covered and quite slick. Once in the cave make sure you have all the light you need. The cave also had several large puddles, you might even call one a small pond, but they were all easy.
enough to avoid. The skylight was particularly pretty. With a ring of water dripping into the cave. We paused there abd turned of our lights to just enjoy the scene. All told we spent about 2 hours in the cave before reaching the ships ladder at the upper entrance.

Snowshoes went back on as soon as we left the cave. The show at the upper entrance is quite deep! The trail down is in pretty good shape, well marked and well traveled. Clearly some people gave made it with out show shoes, but there were not too many post holes.

Another pause at the shelter for some lunch. Then retracing our tracks back to the car. We pushed the limits of our gear's waterproofing. I was glad to have two par of gloves and extra socks!

All told a grand adventure for a Monday!

I figured the snows are coming so better do this now. It was an absolutely beautiful day. Getting to Ape Cave was actually easier than I thought. There are signs on the road. The only sign that I missed was the one from 90 to 83 because it is very small and covered with tree leaves. It is 1 mile after the dam which is a big object of water. If you look at your GPS and see a large body of water on the right, then that's it.

Paid the $5 fee to park. The entrance to lower and upper cave is less than 1/4 mile from the parking lot and well identified. This is the entrance to both the upper and lower cave (see pic below). You will be greeted with a sign at the base of the staircase that will explain your options.

I only went about 100 yards into the lower cave before I realized it was not the hike for me. Too easy. A group of High School kids (3 school bus worths!) had just done the Lower Caves. I figured if there was anything special to see in the Lower Caves it would have been obliterated or taken by those kids anyways.

The journey into the Upper Cave greets you with a rock pile almost immediately. It is the largest rock pile you will encounter. There are maybe 3 or 4 subsequent medium sized rock piles and countless smaller ones.

The best way to describe the rock piles would be to compare them to the rock barriers they put up near the ocean. If you have ever been to the ocean or a bay where they put up a rock wall, or a sea wall, then you know they use large irregular sized rocks that require you to slow down, find a place to step, and maneuver your feet onto it.

I took solace in the fact that the volcanic rock I was hiking on was very strong and had many surface irregularities which made for great traction! It was rare that I look my footing because of slippage. It is indeed moist and damp and cold inside. I wore but a thin wool sweater, gloves, boots, and thick hoodie and was quite comfortable. You will be sweating at the end of the hike so don't overdo the layers.

Very few people on this day. I only met 2 other parties on the way down to the end of the Upper Cave. I trekked with one person the first 100 yards down the lower cave before I turned around. The cave isn't for everyone. The wife of the man I trekked with down the lower cave turned back. She said she felt like crying and had a fear of heights (there aren't that many heights).

I do not recommend hiking poles for the Upper Cave. It will get in the way and slow you down. You can do it for the Lower Cave, but knowing what I do now, I would leave my hiking poles at home regardless of whether or not I was doing the Upper or Lower cave.

2 tough areas for me. The Rockfall or Waterfall (not sure what they call it). It's the 8 foot wall they talk about. The rock wall is very smooth and polished which makes it tougher than the other areas. There is a good foothold on the left side as well as great handholds near the top right that made it possible for me to get up by myself. I wound up giving a hand to the group that came after me and some of them really appreciated it, especially the 11 year old.

The second tough area is called the meatball. It is a large rock that looks like a meatball. It is very large and smooth. I was given a hand (by the same group with the 11 yr old) here so I cannot describe how to navigate it by yourself, but I can say the right side of the meatball is the direction most people went.

Once you reach the skylight, you are very close to the end, maybe 10 minutes. You know you have reached the end when you reach a staircase that is bent in two sections (it's the only one at the end). Once you make it outside, the trail back to the parking lot is on the left, demarcated by a blue sign. The hike back to the parking lot is very pretty indeed, loved every minute of it.

I suggest to do the Lava Canyon which is 10 miles down from the junction where 8303 and 83 meet. It is totally worth the views and information of Mt St Helens. Very beautiful indeed.

At 21 months I figured Lola was ready for spelunking. My first trip was when I was 21 years old with a few college friends down in Southern Indiana.

Lola and I set out after dropping mom of at work. Being a Monday morning the Trailhead was empty but for one car. We put on some warm clothes and hat and set off. At first it was really dark, but our eyes adjusted and it wasn't difficult with the two light I had brought.

The floor was smooth in places, but rough in others so it was important to check your steps periodically. I was worried about tripping with Lola on my back. Trekking poles wouldn't be a bad idea on the lower cave. Next time I'll bring a more powerful lantern so we can see more of the larger rooms.

It was a bit cool and damp. Although I thouht I had dressed Lola warmly enough she was cold and started to protest just as we reached the turn around point where the cave pinched off. "ALL DONE!" she said. So I hurried back out as her protests got louder and more persistent. At the top we had a snack and some water and her spirits lifted so we could go on to the next adventure: The Trail of Two Forests!

This was our first trip to the Ape Caves though I'd been wanting to go for quite some time. We got there at 11 and the parking lots were already full and ppl were parking down the road so the cave was already quite highly populated. The other groups were all polite, the slower ppl letting us pass just as we let the faster folks pass us. We hiked upper and started at the entrance near the interpretive center and worked our way up.

We were prepared with jackets, gloves, sturdy boots, headlamps & spare flashlights. Batteries are good to bring too as we ran into more than one person whose batteries had died and were relying on others for light. Gave most of our spares out but withheld one set for ourselves.

I picked up the previously mentioned beer cans along the way, and my pack was full of trash by the time I got to the end. I'm surprised that with as many rangers as I saw around the interpretive center they didn't assign one to make a clean up run through the place on a daily basis. Maybe check for bodies along the way! I can't believe how many people were dragging their young children through the upper cave which is clearly marked as being not recommended for young children.

Once I made it through there was a good-sized crowd milling around the head of the stairway to climb out. No one wanted to come down, they just wanted to stand there and look into the cave, take pictures, etc. Would be nice if people would realize that the people coming out of the cave have been in the dark for 2-4 hours and give them a little room to climb out without having to squeeze by.

As much fun as I had, this place is dangerous. You will be climbing over rocks and boulders through pitch blackness for a mile and a half or 2-4 hours depending on your speed. There are lots of cracks and crevices just waiting for a foot or leg to slip into and twist or break. I can't imagine how many rescues they must carry out of here each year. My husband had to gently coax one child out of a complete and total screaming meltdown at the foot of the second big climb. He was terrified and crying and did not want to go any further, but had already passed the 8 ft wall and couldn't go back either. People were backed up in both directions waiting and this poor kid was just stuck. I would NOT recommend this hike for children under 12 and even then only if they're relatively athletic kids.

We started the drive from Puyallup through Randall to get to the Ape Caves early. Stopped at Windy Ridge for a look at the mountain and log-filled Spirit Lake on the way down, but made it to the Ape Caves parking lot early enough that there was plenty of parking available.

We chose to go the opposite route that most people were choosing, hiking to the upper cave entrance and then exploring the cave from the top to the main entrance. In retrospect, I'm glad we did so as there were many groups going the other way and we would have almost certainly gotten stuck behind slower groups.

The caves are awesome with amazing rock features throughout. I would consider gloves and sturdy boots a must for the upper cave section, although I saw plenty of sandals and thin shoes in the groups we came across.

I was surprised as we made our way down to the main entrance the number of people we passed that had no idea as to what conditions were ahead. Several groups that had traveled less than 30 minutes in from the main entrance were expecting to reach the upper end of the cave at any time after traversing only a small number of the 20+ rock piles along the way.

We met several groups with small children or elderly members who were struggling with even the easier portions of the cave system and who seemed to be unaware that more difficult obstacles (including climbing over the 8 foot lava fall) were yet to come. More than one group contained sandal-shod, t-shirt wearing teens and twenty-somethings that recalled completing the upper section in less than an hour in the past. Their groups seemed surprised when we indicated to them that we were nearly two hours in from the upper entrance.

When we got to the main entrance, I realized the reason for some of the confusion. Some idiot scraped away the "1" from the 1-1/2 mile length of the upper trail on the sign posted at the bottom of the stairs. The sign now shows that the upper cave is only 1/2 mile in length. Probably the same idiot who drank beer and smoked cigarettes all the way down, leaving his beer cans and butts along the way. Thanks, jerk. Hope your sign destruction doesn't lead to hordes of unprepared groups heading up and getting injured in the upper cave.

Of course, much of this would be avoided if more groups would study the intended hike on wta.org before starting out! Great site and tons of useful information. Thanks for maintaining the awesome site!

It was very crowded on a Saturday morning but we noticed that most people opt for the lower/shorter tube. We encountered 4-5 other parties during the 1.5 miles in the upper cave.

We had only headlamps, which are good for illuminating where you're walking but poor at showing the entire cave. After two hours underground, my headlamp was dying and we were glad to have a lantern as a backup in the pack. Next time, I'd bring taller boots (with ankle support) and leather gloves as there is quite a bit of scrambling over wet rock piles.

There is also one 8' wall halfway through that requires scaling. Evidently there was a rope at one point, but it is not longer in place and there is only one meager foot hold. I'm 5'7" and would have had a tough time getting up it without a hand from my husband. Or a boost from behind.

We also had a toddler in a backpack and he had a ball although there were several spots that were low and required my husband to do some pretty careful navigation as to not bump the baby's noggin. Definitely not a recommended route for young hikers. I've heard that the lower cave is ideal for kids as it's pretty flat and doesn't have many rock piles.

The hike back to the parking lot is quite pretty.

The main parking lot wasn't full yet at 10am, but the area already felt like a zoo. After following a brief, mildly interesting ranger-led tour, we walked down the lower cave (until the ceiling was low enough to require crawling), and then back past the main entrance through the upper cave to the upper entrance (for a total of about 4.5 miles underground).

I felt my Black Diamond Icon headlight was barely strong enough. Also, I would bring a helmet next time: There were several piles of rock that had to be scrambled over, and 2 or 3 "lava falls" that had to be climbed (one using a short rope). The rock wasn't slippery, but I was glad we went uphill rather than down.

Visiting the caves on a busy day is not a good idea: You keep getting blinded by oncoming headlights and camera flashes (making it harder for your eyes to adjust to the dark), and slow, large groups cause congestion in the upper cave.

Photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/eric.jain/ApeCavesAugust2011
Tracklog (outside trail): http://connect.garmin.com/activity/108741090

We camped nearby the night before and we arrived at the trailhead at around 9:00. We hiked up the forest trail to the upper tube which is typically the exit, but we entered there! The tube takes quite a bit of concentration to ensure safe footing, I would suggest bringing gloves since there is many times where climbing over large rocks piles and using your hands is necessary. We passed a few groups of hikers, but didn’t encounter too much traffic. Overall the lava tubes were pretty fun to explore!!

It was a great weekend to be in the Ape Caves. After a stopover at the Pine Creek Information Center to get a Forest Pass and some ideas on where to camp, We headed up to the trailhead. Lots of activity at the trailhead and in the caves.

We started at the lower entrance and went up the upper passage to the upper entrance. There where a lot of people in the cave and we passed several large groups below the lava fall. At the lava fall someone was nice enough to tie a rope to a rock sticking up from the floor on the top side to allow easier climbing, but it was not securely mounted as it slipped off after the last member of our party was up it, We fixed it and moved on.

After the Lava Falls we encountered less groups, but we did meet a couple groups headed down from the upper entrance. Be prepared to wait for groups headed the other way to pass when you approach the tighter spots.

After we passed the Skylight we only met a couple groups, all headed up at about the same pace we were. Make sure to bring a powerful headlamp for the upper section, as scrambling and climbing with a lantern for light can be a challenge. While the cave is a chilly 42 degrees, I had my sweatshirt sleeves rolled up and was sweating pretty good when I climbed out the upper end, so as always, pack lots of water.

I had been to Ape Cave as a teenager in the 70's. I remember only a little, so when Jim told me he had never done Ape Cave and wanted to go, I was eager to go back.

Our week in the Lewis River area began with a drizzly day, so we opted to go to Ape Cave on Monday. The first difference I noticed was a paved parking lot. The road was just dirt and crushed rock 35 years ago. I don't remember there being any amenities; just a sign to the entrance, which had steps down into it. Now there are two vault toilets and a Forest Service Information Center ("Ape's Headquarters"). You can rent lanterns or receive a guided tour. Because of the improvements, a Northwest Forest Pass is required.

Ape Caves is really just one cave, with two entrances. From the Main Entrance, the Lower Passage drops gently to a dead end in about 3/4 mile, and the Upper Passage climbs gently over very rough terrain for a mile or so, past an opening in the ceiling ("skylight"), to the Upper Entrance at 1.2 miles. The cave also continues 200-300 yards past the Upper Entrance to where it dead ends in a large chamber. So from end to end, the cave is about 2 miles long.

From the parking lot, walk on a paved path past the Ape's Headquarters and an interpretive signboard to a junction. A dirt path leading to the left is under a sign reading "Upper Entrance". The day we were there, this sign confused a lot of people. They started walking on the dirt path to find the cave, without even noticing that the Main Entrance was immediately to their right. If you wish to enter the cave at the Upper Entrance, you'll first need to hike the dirt trail for about a mile.

Jim and I decided to do both passages. So we entered the Main Entrance, climbed down the metal stairs, and started down the Lower Passage. I had brought a helmet and two headlamps, one weak and one powerful. Neither had fresh batteries, so I decided to use the weaker one in the easier Lower Passage. It was barely adequate. I found myself using a handheld penlight, which cast more light. The Lower Passage was easily walkable with good light; the floor was rough in some areas but sandy in others, featuring only minor stumbling hazards. At about 3/4 mile, the ceiling dropped to squatting height, then lower. We removed our backpacks and waited while people ahead of us crawled back out from what they reported was the very end, crawling height only. The two people ahead of us then crawled in along the sandy floor. We could see them 15 feet ahead of us, having reached the end, and decided not to crawl to the very end ourselves.

We returned to the base of the metal stairs at the Main Entrance, where I changed headlamps to the powerful one. After I put new batteries in it, the light it cast was fantastic.

We negotiated the Upper Passage slowly, meeting a lot of people walking the cave from the Upper Entrance going down (some unintentionally). A feature known as the 8-foot rock wall was tricky. From the one foothold, I was able to climb the remainder by "bridging", putting one boot on either side wall and relying on friction. Fortunately, my boots clung well enough to the slippery rock walls. It looked even trickier to downclimb.

There were two other areas where I chose to remove my backpack to squeeze through a narrow gap. But mostly, the Upper Passage is all about scampering up, over, and around piles of abrasive volcanic rocks that long ago fell from the ceiling.

The Upper Entrance (which served as the exit for us) has a solid metal ladder/staircase leading out a small hole to the surface. I saw small, because I felt that I needed to remove my backpack to get through it. Without a backpack, it is not a problem. It's a huge improvement over the rickety wooden ladder that I remember scaling (very tentatively) in the 70's.

Most people exited when they got to the Upper Entrance, not even realizing that the cave continued for another 200-300 yards. In fact, the remaining distance is quite easy. There is only one rock pile, and it can be skirted easily on the left side. I found it well worth going the distance to see the very end, despite the prominent graffiti there.

The trail from the Upper Entrance back to the parking lot was in good condition, making for a pleasant above-ground return trip.

Summary:

The temperature in Ape Cave is around 42 degrees. You WILL get dripped on. The Lower Passage is easy enough for kids, with supervision. The Upper Passage is rugged volcanic rock that must be climbed on and around; wear appropriate footwear and clothing.

For your two sources of light, best is a headlamp with spare batteries and a handheld light source to enable you to change the batteries if needed. Fresh batteries are a must. The rental lanterns cast more light, but they require a hand to carry them. You can expect to use your hands in places. You can also expect to bump your head on the rocky ceiling unless you are very careful. In the Upper Passage, I received many comments from other spelunkers wishing they had thought to bring a helmet, both for hands-free spelunking and to avoid hitting their head on low ceilings, a very real hazard.

The WTA Hiking Guide says, "It is not possible to hike in the caves the entire length between the two entrances." I wish I knew what the author meant. You CAN walk the cave the entire length between the two entrances. I think what he was trying to say is that the cave extends beyond both entrances. In order to go from one end to the other, you would have to do what we did: go to the end of the Lower Passage, then from there walk past the Main Entrance to the Upper Passage, beyond the Upper Entrance to the very end of the Upper Passage. Whatever the author was intending, I find his statement to be very misleading. You CAN go from one end to the other! I hope I have clarified this for everyone.

The road is clear all the way up to the caves parking lot. It looks like they added a new lower parking lot with one camp site and fire pit.(it may be for the site host but no one was there so we stayed overnight there.) There is a $5 day use fee for the caves per car load.
We walked to the upper entrance (1.3mi) and came back inside the tube (down hill). Highly recommend a bright lantern. We did and it really showed the fascinating lava forms. Stop and look up! Take your time to investigate and to watch your footing. You do some rock/boulder scambling to get over/around the rock falls withing the upper cave section.
Note-the road to windy ridge on the east side of Mt Helens is still closed (rte 25).

Just a head's up, the road leading to the ape caves is still snow covered. 503 is open until the right turn to the trail heads for Trail of Two Forest and the Ape Caves. Be prepared for 1 mile approach to the trail head on a snow packed trail.

The pit toilets are open, as is the cave hike itself.

Be extremely careful entering and exiting the cave as the entrances are packed with snow and very slippery. We entered at the lower (main) entrance and exited at the upper entrance/exit (main photo on the trail page). The trail back to the parking lot is snow covered and slippery.

It was a ton of fun and an adventure for sure!

Gloves! Glow Sticks! Headlamp! Dress in Layers! The drive from I-5 is 37 miles. We arrived about 11:30am. I was not expecting there to be so many people. Most were heading to the lower caves. We took the upper. We brought glow stick bracelets from the dollar store. Made it easy to Identify our party. Each had a different color. Next time I will wear gloves. The rocks are pumice and very ruff on the hands. A head lamp is better than a flashlight or lantern because both hands are needed for many of the climbs. The 8 foot wall was a challenge. We helped the people in front of us get up and the group behind. Team Work! I could not have made it with out help. Bring Extra batteries & extra flashlights. My headlamp died. Glad I had extra flashlight. Exited the cave at about 4:30pm. Down hill trail, follow the blue diamonds.

What a marvelous nature wonder. Hiking the Ape Caves was everything we heard, read, and expected from this trip and more. The kids had a blast, my wife was happy and I looked great in their eyes for choosing this place as our destination. What they didn't know was that it was this website that led us to explore the caves. We were prepared with coats, headlamps, walking shoes, water, snacks, everything that was recommended by others in their Trip Reports. Thank you.

My husband and I took a camping trip to Lewis River Recreation Area (great FS campground if you are willing to drive a ways!) We took a day trip over to Ape Cave and Trail of Two Forests, they were both incredible!

We chose the Upper Cave of the Ape Cave and it was awesome. As stated in the hiking guide there are 27 boulder piles and an 8 foot wall to scale. It was definitely quite a bit of work getting through the entire cave and I am not sure we could have made it up the wall alone, luckily we were just behind 5 other people and we all helped eachother get up.

Bring a couple of good lights, lanterns are nice and bright but can be difficult to carry as we found ourselves needing both of our hands occasionally. Headlamps seemed to be the best bet.

I highly recommend this hike and the rangers at the Mount St Helens visitor center are very helpful!

There was snow at the start of NF-8303. Everyone parked at the start of that road and walked a mile to the start of the cave. The cave was amazing and we noticed that there is a high ledge almost halfway through the upper cave where a lot of people just turn around. It's worth it to climb it and continue through the whole upper cave until the end. When we got out of the cave there was about knee high snow but there is a footpath you can easily follow back to the entrance. I would highly recommend this hike. Make sure you bring a quality flashlight or headlamp though.

Went to Ape Cave for the first time with a group of 11 friends. None of us had any caving experience so we were all quite excited and a bit apprehensive about the trip. We really didn't know what kind of caving conditions we were going to be faced with but in the end, Ape Cave was one of the best hikes ever. This is definitely a must for hiking enthusiasts.

Getting there
From Seattle, it was about a 3.5 hour drive to the cave entrance. We left around 8:30a and didn't arrive to the cave entrance until noon. The park service and rangers at REI said the road to the cave parking lot would be closed but it was open when we arrived. Guess our warm winter helped in this respect.

As we reached the parking lot, we saw about 20 cars already there. I thought we were in for a rather crammed experience but for the most part, we never met other groups in the cave. From the cave parking lot, it is less than 100 yards to the cave entrance. If you plan on doing the lower hike first, don't worry about bringing too much food or water as you can easily return to your car to resupply.

As we approached the cave, we saw some people walking back to the parking lot looking rather tired and soaked. Hmm...

LOWER TRAIL
We started our hike on the lower trail first. We heard it was relative easy and wanted to see what we were getting ourselves into. As promised, the trail was fairly flat and easy to navigate. The cave floor does have lots of small hard grooves so sturdy hiking shoes are a must. There was also a lot of water dripping from the cave ceiling so wearing waterproof clothing is a must during the wet season. Being wet in 42 degree temperature gets old really fast. I brought gloves that were not waterproof and while they helped during the upper trail, my fingers were pretty cold by the end of the hike. That must explain the people we saw earlier.

After descending for about 30 mins or so, we reached what we could only discern as the end of the cave. The cave appears to branch off into a lower and upper section but both lead to dead ends. It was a nice location to break for some snacks and then the hike back up to the starting point.

UPPER TRAIL
When we got back to the entrance, we decided to continue on to the upper trail rather than return to the car. We were having so much fun and didn't want to waste time top side. As soon as we went past the stairs, we reached a large chamber where the entire ceiling seemed to have caved in. There were huge boulders piled all around us. I'm guessing the room was about the size of 4 tennis courts. At first, we thought to ourselves what an amazing site but then we realized that we had to climb over the pile of boulders in order to continue our hike. Up we go.

This is where the previous descriptions are spot on. Upper trails is not for the faint of heart nor for those without the right hiking shoes or head lights. You are basically climbing (not hiking) over huge boulders to reach the top and then slowly making your way back down. It’s like an earthquake leveled a building and you have to climb over it to get to the other side. If you don't like climbing on your hands and feet, then you may want to take a picture at this point and turn back.

However, climbing your way through the upper trail is definitely an amazing experience and worth the effort. It’s raw and thrilling experience.

After making it over to the first cave in, we were are still very excited until we saw the next pile of boulders that was in our way. I didn't keep count but we basically spent the next hour going over boulder pile after boulder pile. Our knees were getting weak and we definitely were thinking about some yummy steaks when we got out of the cave. We were grateful knowing this wasn't a round trip.

The further we went, the more apparent it became that if anything were to happen in the cave, it was going to be a really long time before any help could reach us. And even if help did come, it was going to be a very slow trip back. If your child wants to be carried after an hour hike above ground, stick to the lower trail. There’s no way anyone can carry another person and make it through the upper trail.

On the few occasions where the trail flattened out, we tortured our non JRR Tolkien friends with a few Lord of the Rings cave scene reenactments. “You shall not pass…that line has been remade…what say you…etc.” Ok…back to the cave.

One of the highlights of the hike was the 8 feet wall that we had scale over. Having more than three people definitely helped. There's no rope so team work or good climbing skills are needed to get over. We also rejoiced when we saw light coming through an opening in the cave ceiling but soon lost hope again when one of our team members told us that this was only an opening part way through the hike. More boulders to climb? Who’s stupid idea was it to go on this hike anyways?

With no way out, we continued on our journey.

After another 30 or so minutes of boulder climbing, we finally reached the exit. At first we saw the faint light streaming through the cave ceiling and then we saw the shiny metal ladder leading the way out. Tired faces quickly turned to joy and spent the next 10 minutes taking group pictures.

HIKE BACK
After climbing back to the surface, we hiked for another mile or so before returning back to the parking lot. Tired and hungry, we quickly dried off, changed into dry clothes and drove as quickly as possible back to Starbucks so the girls could use a flush toilet. Did I mention to definitely use the restroom before entering the cave?

SUMMARY
Ape Cave is definitely one of the best hikes I has ever been on. Cape Alava and Sandpoint Loop was the previous winner. As a child, I went to Mammoth Cave in Kentucky and loved the experience. However, places like Mammoth Cave are all tamed with stairs, lights and guided paths. Ape Cave by contrast gives hikers an untamed caving experience that is relatively safe and accessible. There’s only one path so you can’t get lost and while the trail is challenging, it’s the challenge that makes this hike so unique compared to hikes above ground. Anyone looking for a change of hiking scenery (trees, water, mountains, etc.) should definitely give Ape Cave a try. It’s a different and amazing world down there.

I will definitely be going again.

ADVICE
- Wear waterproof clothing
- Wear sturdy hiking shoes, no tennis shoes
- Use head lights and not hand-held flashlights…bring at a minimum, one extra source of light
- Don’t go alone
- Bring your sense of adventure!

The highway leading up to the parking lot this February was bare and dry. We hiked on the surface up to the end of the upper cave. Only one small section of snow was found.

The entrance from the upper end has a metal ladder leading down into the cave. The hike inside is damp. You will continually hear the sound of water dripping from all over the ceiling but only occasionally will you get a drop on you.

I recommend wearing gloves for crawling over the rocks.
From our direction of travel we went down both lava falls. They were easy to grab ahold of at top and hang down. I could reach the bottom on both without having to jump or slide at all. (6'1")

The large rocks can be tricky to navigate and you must also watch your head for low hanging ceiling. It was a fun hike that I have not been to in about 15 years. It seemed shorter this time.

I took a day off work to go mid-week and we saw only one other car in the parking lot but encountered two small groups on the forest hike up. At 5pm when we reached the parking lot again, we were alone. Signs in town say the Ape Caves are closed. The station there was closed up but there was no notice prohibiting hiking on your own. A Cascade parking permit is required.

Overall our trip to Ape Caves was very fun. Though members of our party may disagree. The little building at the parking lot was closed when we arrived. Fortunately we had all the gear with us we needed.

We started off the adventure with the short lower end. It's about 1.5 miles round trip as the cave slowly slopes to its end 3/4 of a mile in. The floor in this part of the cave has a lot of sand covering the rough lava rock below and is easily traveled. There are a few spots with large rocks to avoid tripping over they are easily seen as long as your not using a penlight. A lantern would work just fine in this section of the cave as you don't really need your hands for much else. As you pass the walls you will find a lot of names drawn in the cave slime, I guess people didn't read the signs saying don't touch. Nearing the end of the lower caves you will see the cave "split" in two parts. An upper area (You can't see much of anything from below) and a lower area. If your small, dexterous and don't mind getting a little wet and sandy you can crawl into the chamber beyond this lower part. I haven't seen it myself as I'm a large fellow at 6' 0", wide shoulders, and a little over 300lbs.

After returning to the surface we took a short break and had a close encounter with the local wildlife. It seems they are accustomed to humans feeding them and one of the birds kept flying over and trying to land on us until we gave him some food.

We set out above ground for the top of the upper chamber. The hike isn't to difficult but there was a lot of damage from (I assume) last winter. Blowndown around just about every corner and more than a few patches of snow in the beginning of the trail. I'm not sure who put them up but there are pink ties to most of the trees on the way up the trail, helping mark the way. Once you get maybe 1/4 mile into the trail the snow and blowdown clear up a bit until near the end. The last 1/4 miles you will encounter a lot of snow and more downed trees. The snow is melting and you should use caution as some parts are very deep. One of our party members fell into a spot nearly 3' deep. The top of the caves being so open from trees has long since had the snow melted.

Once up the trail we started down into the upper chamber. Now at this point I no longer consider this a hike in any way. The upper chamber is challenging and fun but there are some dangerous spots and you should be comfortable climbing over large rocks while being "rained on" for some time as it will take a while to navigate the tube. We took about 100 photos of the lower cave and the trail, however we were not able to take any in the upper chamber. We were more concerned with not getting hurt. The floor doesn't have any silt/sand like the lower chamber does its all lava rock and other pieces from past cave ins. The first major challenge we met with was a 6' wall we had to scale down which wasn't to bad. There were handholds and places for your feet you just need to be careful where you choose to set your feet when you land. The next section is full of large piles of rock you need to scale up and back down. That goes on for maybe 1/4 a mile at which point you will find the "lavafall". This is the 8 foot wall that only has one foothold on the left side (When facing the wall from below). The only handholds for somesone my size are on the opposite side and higher up then I would have liked. Once you pass this wall the rest of the climb is easy. There is a section perhaps 1/2 a mile that is just flat and mostly featureless. The floor is still jagged so watch the ankles! Nearing the end there is another large rock pile you will have to climb over and a little more walking until you meet the stairs to the entrance.

The upper chamber was much more challenging then I thought it would be but I'm glad I did it. As I have read in some other posts about this cave and I will recommend the same advice. Respect your ability. If your looking for a hike don't do the upper chamber. If you want a bit of a climb go for it!