Intro to Backpacking Field Trip - Butte Camp

10:30am at the Safeway in the town of Woodland. Drivers will need a timed entry ticket for the Ape Caves and a Northwest Forest Pass/America the Beautiful Pass to park. More details on the timed entry ticket below. Participants are strongly encouraged to carpool to reduce the number of vehicles at the various trailheads we will be accessing.  

Preference to Tacoma Branch Introduction to Backpacking Students. Trip will open to all Mountaineers based on availability on April 28.

Join us for a volcanic experience on the south side of Mt. St. Helens! We’ll kick this trip off with a short loop hike where we’ll see remnants of a once living forest, then walk through an underground lava tube at the Ape Caves before embarking on our backpack trip to set up camp in the lush basin of Butte Camp. The next day we’ll continue our adventure to the intersection of the rugged but iconic Loowit Trail with views of Mt. Hood as we travel the moon-like landscape on the shoulders of Loowit herself.

This trip is ideal for backpackers that don’t mind getting dirty, playing in the dark, and taking their time to enjoy their surroundings. While we won’t be moving at breakneck pace, we do expect that participants interested in this trip can successfully travel the varied terrain which may include sand, mud, pumice, and big lava rocks.

Day 1 - 4.5 miles RT, 1050 ft gain total with all side trips

We will begin our adventure at the Trail of Two Forests which is about an hour drive from our  meeting place. We’ll stretch our legs on the short and level 0.5 mile boardwalk loop where intrepid hikers can experience “The Crawl” through an underground horizontal tree cast. We’ll have a trail lunch in the picnic area while we wait for our time slot to enter the Ape Caves. The Ape Caves is a short few minute drive from the Trail of Two Forests.

While at the site, we’ll explore the Lower Ape Caves where we’ll hike underground in the dark through an extinct lava tube and descend about 140 feet to clock another 1.5 miles round trip. Upon exiting the cave, we’ll visit the gift shop for some unique Ape-themed memorabilia and then drive about 20 to 30 minutes to our trailhead at Red Rock Pass. From here we’ll hike through a lava rock deposit with amazing views of Mt. St. Helens, then through forests to our campsite via the Toutle and Butte Camp Trails. This portion of our trip totals about 2.5 miles and 900 feet of gain and was once a popular climbing route prior to the 1980 eruption. It sees very little use now. We’ll set up our camp, make dinner, and enjoy our quiet campsite nestled beside a spring-fed creek. Your choice of Ursack or a bear canister for food storage. No bear hangs please.

Day 2 - 5 miles RT, 775 ft gain including Loowit Trail intersection side trip

Our second day will begin with a camp breakfast and a short 2.5 mile round trip and 775 ft gain day hike with light packs to the intersection of the Loowit Trail. On the way, we’ll be greeted with views of Mt. Hood and the valley below. Your excitement will build as we approach the trail intersection to see Mt. St. Helens right in front of you! We’ll pause here for a break and photos while we marvel at the views from this nearly 4800-foot vantage point. We’ll have a group decision about whether we hike further on the Loowit Trail. About a tenth of a mile to the east is a boulder field and traveling about a mile west will present lovely expansive views of the valley floor including Butte Camp Dome, a small but prominent forested dome where our camp is located.  

The optional side trip on the Loowit will add another 2.2 more miles and about 300 feet of gain to our day bringing the total mileage for this day to 7.2 miles and 1075 ft gain. This total includes the morning hike to the intersection (1.25 miles), the side trip east and west on the Loowit (2.2 miles), returning to pack up our camp (1.25 miles) and the hike back to the trailhead (2.5 miles) before departing this magical area. Plan on a trail lunch and an optional post-trip food stop at the Lone Fir Resort in Cougar, to celebrate our accomplishments.

Travel and Cost Considerations

• Travel to the Ape Caves area is expected to take about 3 hours from Tacoma: about 2 hours to our meeting place in Woodlands, and another hour to the Ape Caves area.
• Drivers will need a timed entry Ape Caves ticket and a Northwest Forest Pass/America the Beautiful Pass to park at the Ape Caves.
• Ape Caves timed entry tickets are non-refundable $2 per vehicle and can be purchased on recreation.gov (Ape Cave Interpretive Site Ticket) beginning April 15 at 7am. Drivers should purchase the 1pm time slot for Thursday July 10, 2025. Purchasing your ticket ahead of time will ensure you will be able to visit this geological wonder with us. Tickets sell out quickly so mark your calendar and be ready to purchase your timed entry ticket on April 15.
• Review good carpooling practices and expect to reimburse your driver if you plan to carpool.

Hiking Considerations

• Our goal is for you to safely experience this volcanic landscape, and it tends to be sharp and angular a lot of the time. Camp shoes like Crocs or Tevas are acceptable footwear for time spent in camp but are not acceptable footwear for hiking in volcanic terrain.
• We will be in total darkness for approximately an hour and a half while hiking underground in the Ape Caves. Folks that have trouble with enclosed spaces or darkness should skip this trip.
• There is one very short section of trail from camp to the Loowit that is not vegetated and can be a bit slippery from small pumice stones and rounded rocks. Hikers should be comfortable on narrow trail (about 1 foot wide) with a steep drop off to one side. The second photo in the second trip report linked below in the Media & References section shows this area. We will travel this section slowly. Folks that have trouble with heights or with hiking along steep drop offs should skip this trip.
• Isolated small patches of snow may exist but we don't expect microspikes will be needed or that the presence of snow on the trail will present significant challenges or safety concerns for participants on this trip. 

Media & References

• Backpackers interested in the formation of the Ape Caves can watch the Nick on the Rocks episode linked here. The footage referred to as “The Crawl” will be something we can optionally experience at the Trail of Two Forests.
• For a more real-life experience in the Lower Ape Cave, backpackers should watch the video footage here. It is less Hollywood-ized and there are also good tips for how to come prepared to hike in the dark at the end.
• Photos in the trip reports here, here and here provide good visuals for what you should expect to encounter along the backpack portion of this trip. You can also view my trip report for Days 3 and 4 along with a photo of Butte Camp here. Note that we will not be travelling on the boulders or ropes mentioned in the trip report.

Other Considerations

• In addition to your overnight pack, you will need a small day pack to carry your 10 Essentials in while we are hiking the Trail of Two Forests and in the Ape Caves. 
• Mt St Helens National Volcanic Monument and the surrounding trails receive funding from the US Forest Service. With cuts to seasonal workers announced for 2025, I encourage you to watch this video to learn how backpackers visiting trails funded by the US Forest Service can make a big difference.

Registration for day hikes

Our day hiking adventure will be managed on a separate trip roster because of challenges with the club's registration system when we visit multiple trailheads on the same date. Participants on this backpack trip will be added to the day hike roster by the leader.  

My Style

I prefer a more social experience and enjoy the company of others on trips. When I'm not socializing, you will probably catch me gazing at the beauty of the backcountry or taking pictures of it. I've been known to swim in alpine lakes, stand underneath waterfalls, and soak my feet in cold water after a hard day hiking. In the evenings I like to sit around the campfire or communal area and drink my tea to wind down for the night and I'm usually up early in the mornings, sometimes to watch the sunrise with a warm drink. If these sound like experiences you would enjoy, I'd love your company!