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Ape Canyon Cabin Found?


Guest crabshack

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One of the articles states this: "...the "paydirt" evidence was the find of the horizontal log, about 6" underground with the nails driven in to it."

 

What is significant about a 6" underground log?

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I don't know how active that area was during that era, but there may have been more than one site where men were working the area.  There were places and times where prospectors were thick as fleas.  The area where I grew up northwest of Reno had a wealth of old mining sites, and the terrain had actually been shaped in places by deforestation and hydraulic mining.  I recall three or four times when someone fell into a shaft or got lost in a mine and had to be rescued.  In the 90's folks actually started dynamiting the entrances to the old mines to close them off.

 

Not saying they didn't find the right cabin, just that there might have been more than one up that way.  So few artifacts are attributable to a specific person.

 

Don't think it really matters, though if you're just looking for evidence that someone was up there at one time.

 

Has anyone actually looked up the old mining claim they must have filed?  It would have some official description of its location that could help.  Those records would also indicate if there were any other claims in the area.

 

I take it that Ape Canyon was not changed geographically by the eruption?

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Other than a slight accumulation of ash, hardly affected at all. There was a mud flow just to the south (hence Lava Canyon) but the land forms near the crater seemed to divert major activity in directions other than Ape Canyon.

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I have read the BF story behind Ape Canyon, however, when I visited Ape Cave this past August I got a brochure (see attached image of relevant section) from the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument stating that the whole story from 1924 was a hoax perpetrated by two boy scouts.

 

I have done no research on this matter, but was curious that the National Monument had taken a firm view on the matter and is promoting the hoax story.

 

Any suggestions for further reading on the research done to support the hoax theory.

 

 

post-18859-0-26852300-1411770473_thumb.j

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BFF Patron

You believe the account from the Park Officials?    There were newspaper accounts at the time about the incident.      At that point in time boy scouts were even more rare in the area than BF.   Certainly the story would be a good campfire story around Boy Scout campgrounds much later, but that does not mean it was not based on a true incident.  

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If it was a legitimate claim, I think JDL has a great idea of verifying if there was a claim there and the location and owners/workers of the claim(s). Might be able to find it online if such a records database is available for that area.

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Guest Stan Norton

The chaps researching the cabin location have already verified that the mining claim was legit. The lead investigator was or is a land claims agent or similar so hopefully knows what he is talking about. The backstory is very well documented I believe. The only controversial bit is whether or not they were indeed attacked by apes! Something odd happened there, whatever it was. There is a very interesting podcast about the apparent rediscovery of the cabin.

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Guest crabshack

Folks, most all your questions/concerns are addressed by Marc Myrsell in the podcast I posted the link to above.

 

It's worth listening to if your interested in the subject, he seems to have done his homework.

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