2006 - Mon, July 31

MEM-SEA
July 29-August 5
Washington, Oregon

• We departed our campsite around 9 AM. Drove to Ape Cave (links to Wikipedia - interesting article), which was part of a massive lava field in Gifford Pinchot National Forest. There was no one around, which is pretty rare for such a seemingly touristy place. We decided to explore a bit, threw on some layers to keep warm, hiking shoes, and grabbed the lantern. It's wilderness, people...there are no lights. You enter down a passageway which is about in the center of this giant 'worm' underground. You can go to the left, travel .75 miles and come back, or go to the right, about .5 miles to another exit. We're men. We went the long way. It was an experience, just being in a place where you couldn't see a thing, it was so dark. Brad was not a fan of turning off the lantern and taking it all in with the remaining senses. We got to the end of the tube, and the ceiling of the cave got lower and lower and lower until it was only about 6-8 inches. Brad stayed behind while Nick did the belly-battle-crawl as far as he could...and had to back out the same way after about 40-50 feet. Scary. Claustrophobic.
• Went to the Lahar Lookout to view Mount St. Helen's but it was pretty cloudy around the top. There was a better view when we were a few more miles away. Spent a few hours exploring the area, checking out rock flows, different views of the volcano, etc.
• Drove south to Stevenson, WA on the Columbia River, where we had lunch at the River Cafe. Nick had egg salad and Brad had fish & chips. Good food, we agreed.
• Crossed the Bridge of the Gods (Col. River) and went to Multnomah Falls, which is the 2nd highest year-round falls in the US. An old lady recommended Eagle Creek to camp, but there were only a few sites and all overlooked the interstate (84). Rode east to Wyeth Campground - more secluded. Campsite #10 ($10). Went for ~3 mile hike on trail 411, which was pretty steep, but had excellent views of the Columbia River Gorge and huge rock cliffs.
• Much warmer today - (78-82º)
• Beer of the day is Full Sail American IPA and Twilight Amber
• Dinner - BBQ chicken (seeing a theme here?), coal-cooked potatoes and beans.
• Mileage 402 total/123 today.