Guler Ice Caves
Updated: Nov 28, 2022
An Ice Caves alternative to the popular Ape Caves in Gifford Pinchot National Forest.
Name: Guler Ice Caves
Area Coordinates: 45.96135, -121.63265
Area Elevation: 2884′
Access: Drive up/Cave hike
Fees: The forest service website says it’s $5/vehicle/day
Notes: I’m not a big cave person. I’ve done cave hikes before, but don’t have much of a desire to do that again at this point in life. So I went into the cave, but didn’t hike it. I’ve linked two posts under resources that talk about how to hike in the caves if you’re interested in doing that.
Date: 5-4-21
I saw “Ice Cave” on my map and realized I was really close. So I decided to go check it out. There were some snow patches on the road, but nothing that wasn’t passable.
We pulled up in the “Picnic Area.” It looked kind of like a campground with sites, but only for day use. We figured out where the trailhead was. We explored the east side and discovered a cave entrance very close to the place we parked. We climbed down the wooden staircase into the cave. There was ice and snow. It was so cool how there was ice hanging down from the cave ceiling. There is ice in the cave year round due to it keeping a consistent temperature. We took some pictures and then climbed back out. Being fully honest, caves freak me out. I’ve done the hike through Ape Caves as well as other cave hikes, but it isn’t my favorite activity.
After I got home I looked up the history of the cave. It’s called Guler Ice Caves after Christian Guler who used the cave to store produce until it went to market. The Ice Cave was known to Native Americans and early settlers in the Trout Lake area (OregonHikers).
It sounds like there are more caves to the west. This surprisingly isn’t a “well known” place. So if you’re wanting a less populated area to explore caves maybe try this one instead of Ape Caves.
How to get there (from Trout Lake, WA)
Map
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