Ape Canyon Cabin Found?

[SWWASAS]

The thing I find strange is that the geology of that area does not support the presence of most things that miners would be interested in.    I know on the North side there are some copper deposits that some company has a claim on but requests for approval for test drillings have been repeatedly denied by the government.      Unless you are interested in sulfur compounds or pumas the slopes of a young volcano are not normally a good place to look for gold or silver.   Mt St Helens was erupting when Lewis and Clark passed in the early 1800s.     Of course miners do not necessarily have to know what they are doing.    There are some gold pacer claims South East of there on the East Fork of the Lewis.    I have been there when they were running their dredging equipment and the claims markers are evident along the river.   That has to be cold work.    In a river fed with snow runoff, in your wetsuit feeding a suction dredge.     I have experienced some strange events along that river in that area with the claims but nothing I can pin on BF.  

 

Out in the lahar just South of Ape canyon I have found footprints in an open area and previously posted the picture.   The East side where Ape Canyon is located is the unpopulated side of the mountain.     Before the 1980 eruption,  I think that area was very active for BF.         

Edited September 27, 2014 by SWWASASQUATCHPROJECT

[bipedalist]

I have talked to a a descendant who had a relative associated with the original miners at Ape Canyon.  Unless my leg was being pulled this was not a boy scout prank.  

[Explorer]

Crabshack,

 

Thanks for the radio blog link (I missed that link above).

 

I listened to Episode #12 and it was a very good introduction to the Ape Canyon story and excellent summary of the research that Marc Myrsell has done.
Marc did a good job going over the competing hoax hypotheses (one claimed that the hoax was done by Native Americans, another claimed that it was done by YMCA boys camping at Spirit Lake, and another claimed that it was done by other miners) but he did not mention any hoax perpetuated by boy scouts (the story that the GPNF says is the truth).

 

He did not address the issue of why the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument is pushing and promoting the boy scouts hoax story. Usually, when you have controversial claims or stories like this, the honest thing to write on a brochure would be to tell the original story (and called it a myth) and to state other competing hypotheses (hoax, other). However, the National Monument is stating it as a fact that this is a hoax. Call me naïve, but I find the brochure to be deceptive unless they have incontrovertible evidence for the hoax story.

 

On the radio interview, Marc says that he told Rick McClure (Chief Archaeologist of the Gifford Pinchot NF at the time, who just retired on Sept. 20, 2014 after 34 years of service) that he found the cabin and that Rick was very interested. Rick told him that the NF had attempted to find the cabin but was unsuccessful. I find it odd that the GPNF calls the original story a hoax but still spent archaeological resources to find it.

Look forward to see the DVD “Mountain Devil†summarizing all of Marc Myrsell’s research on this story.

[Guest]

Not sure why there is such a mystery as to it's location, (Author) William Jevning went there in the 70's and describes the adventure in one of his books.

[SWWASAS]

If the cabin suddenly disappears then I think we will know what has been going on there.    This same area, a couple of BF researchers had found a footprint and on their way back to their vehicle to get casting materials encountered a Ranger and told him where the footprints were located.     The researchers returned with the casting materials only to find that all evidence of the footprint had been scrubbed away and pine needles scattered to cover the disturbance.    Rangers personal policy or official policy?  No way of knowing.   I know researchers who do the same thing.   

[Guest]

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.

 

 

 

I'm no conspiracy theorist, but... the potential presence of giant apemen running around is not good for tourism 

And who would have a vested interest in tourism in the area? Those that run the park.

[SWWASAS]

It is even worse than that.    Areas with significant BF populations would have to be preserved as sanctuaries and human access restricted.    Humans other than government approved scientists would probably be prohibited due to the impact on the BF populations and the potential danger.    Suddenly the missing 411 would become significant and have to be explained.    The entire nature, budget, and purpose of the National Park system in these areas would change.       With the public prohibited,  the public would loose interest in funding those areas.     Without tourists to protect, draconian cuts in funding and personnel would follow.    Federal forests would fall under sanctuary protection.   What little is still logged in them would stop for never ending environmental impact studies.    Since Forest Service revenues are tied directly to logging, their funding would dry up.       You can see why employees would keep their mouth shut about what they know about BF. 

[Guest crabshack]

Found some photos and a report (no squatch seen) from a 2011 canyoning trip up Ape Canyon.

 

 

 

 

more...

http://www.canyoneeringnorthwest.com/ApeCanyon/Ape_Canyon.php

Edited September 28, 2014 by crabshack

[Explorer]

Crabshack,

 

Thanks for the cayoneering report on Ape Canyon.

 

Looks like going down Ape Canyon is a cakewalk.

 

Those guys are either brave or reckless (isn't that the definition of young people).

 

Not sure why a BF would be going up or down this difficult and dangerous to climb canyon; only thrill seeking humans would do that.

[JDL]

For them, terrain is less of an issue and terrain that is daunting to us provides a barrier from us.

[bipedalist]

*√∆ yep look at the Vancouver island sighting where bf does the hand over hand vertical cliff or runs down the cliff like a man goat

[SWWASAS]

Those pictures are not representative of the terrain away from that ravine.    The Ape Canyon trail is well used and meanders back and forth across a shoulder of forested area that was spared from the lahar flows following the 1980 eruption.     That particular forested area provides a lot of cover for any BF who goes up into that area.     Not sure why BF would go up into there other than the altitude would provide cool temperatures on warmer days.      In the spring the area is just below the snow line / timber line.     There were BFRO reports in just the last year where the last people to leave the Ape Canyon parking area were hearing howls and other vocalizations.      It might be interesting up there at night after all the cars leave. 

 

This rock stack was found about a half mile South of the Ape Canyon trail well out in the lahar along with a couple of large footprints.    The rangers are still looking for that person that goes off trail in the Monument and takes pictures without permission.    

[Guest Crowlogic]

There was a book from the 70's that showed a photo of the cabin which at the time of the photo was still standing mostly intact.  Seeing the topography from google earth it very much confirms the description of how the event could have unfolded.  Log cabins can stand for well over a hundred years.  Seems that the cabin was still standing in 1966.  Safe to say Boy Scouts didn't make this up!

 

 

 

[url=http://s382.photobucket.com/user/CrowLogik/media/th_zpsd1e0d5f7.jpg.html]RL]

Edited September 28, 2014 by Crowlogic

[Guest]

I'm no conspiracy theorist, but... the potential presence of giant apemen running around is not good for tourism 

And who would have a vested interest in tourism in the area? Those that run the park.

You know some African countries actually have tours where people can actually look at apemen : ) Alright so they're really apes, but same thing really. Humans are apes and the most dangerous ones of all and we let them walk around freely.

[Explorer]

The link that Crabshack shared above had a nice map of all the rappels needed in going down Ape Canyon and their approximate drop.

 

The map shows max drop at 20 meters (or ~65.6 ft) but the author of the article writes that biggest drop was ~75 ft (still a tough climb for anybody without ropes on a wet rock including BF, but maybe not impossible).

 

I have done canyoneering in Utah, but it looks like baby stuff compared to this extreme version.  I have no idea if humans could climb that canyon without ropes.  But if humans could, then so can a BF.

I forgot to mention that the map shows 18 rappels, but the author and his two companions estimated that they did 20 rappels.