Getting There

It's 28 miles from Woodland to the Cougar. There are a couple of gas stations here. Continue east on SR-503 which becomes Rd 90 for 9.5 miles to Ape Cave. Looks for the sign to Ape Caves, June Lake, Climber's Bivouac, Ape Canyon & Lava Canyon which is Rd 83. It's 0.3 miles to Trail of Two Forests and 0.7 miles to Ape Cave.

The day before I did a mentor hike on the 83 road and was staying at the Cougar RV Park & Campground.

I had a mentor slot but no one had signed up so I just tried to do my regular routine.

The Hike

Distance: 2.64 miles
Elevation Gain: 377 feet
Maximum Elevation: 2,444 feet

It'd been a minute since the last time I was in the in the cave. I was here with the 2024 Volcano Naturalist class in March but only went through the lower cave. Before that, the last time I was in the upper passage was Aug 2023.

I figured it was a good time to explore the cave again since it was rainy above ground. Visitors at the entrance were huddled under the shelter with the signage. It was just too crowded to do my regular thing with the visual aids, etc.

This hike is a bit lean on photos but I always love the view of the exit since the skylights let outside like pour into the cave.

It's such a magical place and I didn't have too much trouble climbing up the Lava Falls obstacle.