“Ape Cave” in the Gifford Pinchot National Forest went unnoticed for about 2,000 years.
Then in 1951, Larry Johnson of Amboy, Washington was logging in the area when he discovered the entrance to the lava tube cave, which was at the time, almost completely blocked with vegetation and timber growth.
Johnson then related ‘the find’ to the Harry Reese family and they investigated and explored what is now known as Ape Cave.
Why is it called Ape Cave?
Harry Reese was Scoutmaster of a Boy Scout Troop called “The Apes;” so named because of their interest in the legend of Mt. St. Helens and its Native American tales of ole sasquatch. Thus the cave they explored in those years was tagged “Ape Cave” after the Scout Troop of that day.
Contrary to a published bigfoot book, the 1924 Fred Beck Story in Ape Canyon was not the motivation for the naming of the 1951 Ape Cave. The canyon story was on the other side of the mammoth mountain from Ape Cave. The Scouts were influenced by the Native Americans and their campfire stories, which did not include Fred Beck but rather focused on Native encounters with what they perceived as the mountain’s hairy apes in the ’50’s. There are no stories to support the notion that sasquatches ever inhabited Ape Cave.
The cave itself was formed 2,000 years ago, what is now a cave was once a stream bed. An eruption from the mountain’s summit filled the gully with lava, which did not harden consistently. As the outward part of the flow cooled and hardened, the inner strand kept moving out the bottom of the cave.
The lava flowed for 3 to 6 months, resulting in the cave as we know it today; at 12,810 feet, it is the longest such formation in North America. Walls average 30 feet thick. The forests grew up and over the main entrance until it was discovered by Lawrence “Larry” Johnson in 1951.
In a round about way, it was indeed named after the legendary sasquatch by way of a Boy Scout Troop named “The Apes.” According to Native American legend, those apes were the elusive sasquatch.
Watch out for the Wild Apes!
Mount St. Helens has long been famous as an area of frequent Bigfoot, Sasquatch or “Hairy Ape” sightings. Nearby “Ape Canyon” was the sight of the famous reported skirmish between Miners and a family of Bigfoot back in 1924. The incident has become a legend in the Northwest – here is the bigfoot story from one of the miners – “I FOUGHT THE APEMEN OF MOUNT ST. HELENS, WA”.
Source: http://www.bigfootencounters.com/articles/apecave.htm
Gabriel H
Fascinating. Imagine making such a discovery
JOHN E
GOOD INFO.
Marc B
Glad to see this cave finally called out on Sasquatch Chronicles. I’d been in there about 20 yrs ago.. my local brother in law called it Monkey Cave if I’m not mistaken and at that time it was off the beaten path. Quite a cool place to visit…big lava tube entrance like Hawaiian caves, but funnels way down in size as you go way in: hope you are not claustrophobic cos there was a belly crawl necessary to get to the back chamber! ( I am… but I toughed it out.)
Having revisited the sasquatch topic now 20+ years later… and seeing the activity reported around Mt St Helens and specifically Gifford Pinchot area- I have often laid in bed wondering how that darn “Monkey Cave” got its name?!
Coincidence? I think not!
Gumshoguy
Interesting article! This topic always lends itself to mystery or something dark and forbidding but there are about sixty such reports pointing to Bigfoot/ Sasquatch inhabiting caves of sorts all across America.
joel v
I love that area! A friend and I were standing near the blue lake trailhead and were growled at by what could have only been one of these giants!! It nearly knocked us over! And it sounded like it was right on top of us! But as anyone knows that area it’s washed out and open with only boulders and sparce timber! On the right looking north it’s forest! We’re not sure where it came from but like I said it felt right on top of us! And it sounded like a giant demon! It was the most guttural growl I’ve ever heard! I was also up there this summer and these elk hunters were getting there camp ready and I asked them if they ever had an encounter with a sasquatch! One of the older guys walked up and told me he was growled at by something on the trail going up to blue lake near the stream that flows out of the lake near the left ridge. I told him my story and he said he knows there up there and he’s been elk hunting in that area for 30 years and has never been growled at by anything with that force!
I’ve had 8 class b encounters with these creatures over the last few years in Washington and Oregon! Some were very scary and unusual! These creatures are out there!
PATRICK
Enjoyed. And thanks for other’s recollections. Love my SasChron.