CRAIG HILL; The News Tribune
Published: August 30th, 2007 06:52 AM
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RUSS CARMACK/The News Tribune
A father-son outing takes John Leischner of Selah and 9-year-old Ryan to Boulder Cave.
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Devils Creek waterfall flows at the cave’s entrance.
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Observation decks dot Boulder Cave’s.
Kids love caves. Bats, bears, Batman. No telling what you’ll find in a cave.
That’s precisely why every year Teresa Vickel of Yakima and her friends take their kids to Boulder Cave near Chinook Pass.
“The kids love the idea of exploring a cave,” Vickel said as she entered the cave. “And the parents think it’s pretty cool, too.”
Doug Jenkins of the Naches Ranger District has hiked through the 200-foot tunnel dozens of times.
“The kids are always saying, ‘Maybe I’ll see a bat,’” Jenkins said. “And when they get in the middle of the cave where it is really dark, they try to scare each other.
“Plus, I think people just think it’s a unique experience to walk in one end of a cave and out the other.”
Boulder Cave is one of just a handful of easily accessed caves in the Cascades and one of only four you can actually explore.
And, fortunately for children, all the caves are family friendly.
Each trip requires a $5 Northwest Forest Pass per vehicle. The passes are available at ranger stations and online at nwpubliclands.org. Don’t forget your flashlight.
Brave the caves: Five to explore
APE CAVE
This 2 1/4-mile lava tube is the king of Washington caves. Formed by an eruption 2,000 years ago, Ape Cave is the only one of the more than 50 lava tubes around Mount St. Helens that can be visited without special permission.
The cave can provide an adventure for your kids, regardless of their age and durability. The lower cave is an easy walk and can be accessed by a staircase near the parking lot. If you are looking for a hardier challenge, you can walk the length of the cave, scrambling over large rock piles as you go.
Forest rangers recommend 21/2 hours to explore the entire cave. If you go, rangers suggest taking three light sources and spare batteries. Sturdy shoes, warm clothes and a helmet are also recommended.
Hiking distance: Up to four miles.
Directions: Follow Highway 503 through Cougar and continue on Forest Service Road 90. Seven miles past Cougar, turn left on FS Road 83. After two more miles, turn left on FS Road 8303 and continue to the trailhead.
Info: Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument, 1-360-247-3900.
BIG FOUR ICE CAVES
These caves are a popular family destination most of the time, but if your children aren’t nimble you might want to store it away for next summer. Last winter’s flooding washed out the bridge over the Stillaguamish River, leaving just a log for visitors to scurry across.
“It’s OK for older kids, teenagers,” said Diane Boyd of Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. “I’ve seen young kids up there, but we are not recommending it right now.”
Boyd says the bridge likely won’t be fixed until next year.
The caves are carved under the snow banks of Big Four Mountain by wind and water each summer.
But there’s one big catch to enjoying these caves. You can’t go inside.
“It’s not safe,” Boyd said. “They are natural, and they naturally collapse every year. People have been killed in the ice cave.
“You can enjoy the caves without going in.”
Hiking distance: Two miles.
Directions: From Granite Falls, turn left on Mountain Loop Highway and continue through Verlot. Find the trailhead about 14 miles past Verlot.
Info: Darrington Ranger District, 360-691-7791.
BOULDER CAVE
Not only does Boulder Cave draw hiking families, but also it’s popular with bats.
Don’t expect to see any bats on your trip. The crush of people exploring the 200-foot-long cave each summer keeps the bats in hiding. But in the winter the bats – about 65 – return. The cave is closed Nov. 1 to April 1 to protect them.
Jenkins of the Naches Ranger District says visitors should stay on the trail in the cave and not explore its chambers. He also recommends good shoes, especially if you are going to explore Devils Creek, which runs through the cave all the way to the parking area.
There is a flat, natural waterslide in the creek below the caves and a small waterfall above the cave.
“It’s a perfect little playground for kids,” Teresa Vickel of Yakima said.
But be careful, Jenkins said. Some visitors have thrown glass bottles in the creek from the cliffs overlooking the gorge. “I definitely wouldn’t go in the creek with bare feet,” Jenkins said. He also urges parents to keep their children from climbing on the rocks in the caves and from getting too close to the edge of the cliff along the trail approaching the cave.
Hiking distance: 1.5 miles.
Directions: Follow Highway 410 over Chinook Pass. Turn south at the Boulder Cave sign between Mileposts 95 and 96 and continue to the trailhead at Boulder Cave Campground.
Info: Naches Ranger District, 1-509-653-1400.
ICE CAVE
This is a lava tube formed by an ancient eruption of Mount Adams. Ice forms in the cave each year, leaving huge frozen stalactites and stalagmites and a chilly place for children to play.
A staircase accesses the cave.
“It’s a neat place for kids as long as you don’t let them climb down into the second part of the lava tube,” said Gerry Harding, a Gifford Pinchot National Forest ranger. “You should have a hard hat and a flashlight to go in there.”
Another nearby cave experience is the Natural Bridges. There isn’t a cave here anymore, but this ancient lava tube has collapsed, leaving two natural bridges.
“Kids like walking across the bridges,” Harding said. “Most people visit the caves and the bridges on the same trip.”
Hiking distance: 1/4 mile for each.
Directions: Follow Highway 141 through Trout Lake as the road turns to Forest Service Road 24. Six miles past Trout Lake turn left on Road 301 and continue to the trailhead.
Info: Mount Adams Ranger District, 1-509-395-3400.
LAYSER CAVE
This small cave was discovered 25 years ago by ranger Tim Layser while he was working in Gifford Pinchot National Forest near Randle. But this cave is not new.
Scientists found stone tools and animal bones in the cave. They believe the cave was used as a shelter and to store meat for more than 7,000 years.
The cave is only 32 feet deep and easy enough to explore without a flashlight.
The short trail and the cave entrance have interpretive signs that supply more history on the cave.
Hiking distance: 450 yards.
Directions: From U.S. 12 in Randle, turn south on Highway 131. After a mile, turn left at the sign for the Cispus Center. After seven miles turn left at the Layser Cave sign and continue up the short, steep dirt road to the trailhead.
Info: Cowlitz Valley Ranger District, 1-360-497-1100.
