The area has been inhabited by First Nations for thousands of years. Both the Mount Cayley massif and The Black Tusk on the opposite side of the Cheakamus River valley are called tak'takmu'yin tl'a in7in'axa7en by the Squamish people. In their language it means Landing Place of the Thunderbird. The Thunderbird is a legendary creature in North American indigenous peoples' history and culture. When the bird flaps its wings, thunder is created, and lightning originates from its eyes. The Mount Cayley massif and The Black Tusk are considered sacred to the Squamish people as they have played an important part of their history. Mountain bilberries, Canadian blueberries and oval-leaved blueberries, being a favored food of the Squamish people, were gathered in large berry fields on and near the massif. Glassy rhyodacite collected from small outcrops on the slopes have been found in goat hunting sites and the Elaho rockshelter which have been collectively dated around 8,000 to 100 years old. Cayley rhyodacite has only been found in the northern parts of the Squamish Nation territory.