Imnaha Guard Station

Spend a few days enjoying the quiet and beauty of a remote, rustic mountain cabin tucked in the depths of an old-growth forest of mainly Douglas-fir, white fir, and incense cedar, as well as some ponderosa pine, sugar pine, and western white pine (all of which would have been more common prior to the post-1930s fire-suppression era).

A notably large Douglas-fir (commonly called "The Big Tree") is situated a few hundred feet down a maintained spur trail from the Imnaha Campground and the cabin. It has a little fence around it, and it’s about 300 or more years old. Most of the mature trees in the area are three to four feet in diameter.

Wonderful sounds in this area are the songs of the varied thrush and the hermit thrush. Although often heard, they are seldom-seen inhabitants of the dense timber. The loud drumming of the pileated woodpecker, the largest woodpecker in North America, is also heard occasionally. Nuthatches, chickadees, Stellar’s jays are all common at Imnaha.

Curl up with a good book or a cup of cocoa in the pine-paneled living room in front of the lava-rock fireplace. (Firewood is stocked at the beginning of the season, and is stored outside and in the garage; supplies may run low.) Enjoy the comforts of a bathroom featuring running water, a hot shower and flush toilet. The bedroom furnishings include a full-size bed, a small closet and two dressers. The kitchen is equipped with a table and chairs, as well as a sink and small countertop for meal preparation. Visitors should bring cookware, utensils and dishes. The stove, refrigerator, and kitchen light are operated by propane, and potable water for drinking and cooking is available from the faucet. A picnic table in the backyard permits comfortable outside dining.

A very small Forest Service campground with four sites, also called Imnaha, is located within sight of the cabin. However, the cabin’s yard is fenced, and campers typically respect the cabin occupants’ privacy. They may stroll nearby on their way to visit the beautiful nearby Imnaha Springs, but the access trail passes on the far side of the garage building from the cabin itself.

History

The guard station cabin at Imnaha Springs was built in the 1930s, replacing a one-room Forest Service "shack" built there almost twenty years earlier. The cabin, built by the Civilian Conservation Corps during the Great Depression, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. This small, rustic cottage is considered to be an outstanding example of CCC construction in the Pacific Northwest, and was used as a fire-watch or guard station by the Butte Falls Ranger District through the late 1970s. From the time of its construction during the Depression until well into the 1950s, Imnaha Guard Station lay at the "end of the road" from Butte Falls; now, instead of a horse trail, Forest Service Road 37 connects the town Butte Falls with the community of Prospect to the north.

At a Glance