Historic Cabins & Places

 This story is about places that intrigued me in my younger days and still do.   Just wish I could go back and see some of them.  Maybe some of you have seen some of these places.

Mike

ps--over the years I have written many stories and starting to put together an index of my writings as some of you may not have seen some of them as the mailing list has grown.    One day hoping to complete My Career with the Forest Service and get it published.   

                                         HISTORIC CABINS & PLACES

 

A few years back I bought a book titled UNCLE SAM’S CABINS by Les Joslin.  It is a visitor’s guide to historic U.S. Forest Service Ranger Stations of the west.   It has many pictures of old cabins used as ranger stations, guard stations and pack stations, along with the history of these places.   Some of these are no longer used by the Forest Service, some are rented out to the public, others have fallen to disrepair and some have been burned down.    Some of the older cabins were rustic, dating back to the early days of the Forest Service when there was only a District Ranger, maybe his assistant and a few seasonal fire guards all on horseback patrolling the forests from these remote cabins.

I have seen a few of these places in my travels, either while working for the Forest Service or on my own.    The Gold Beach Ranger Station where I worked from 1979-88 is shown in the book with a short story about its history along with the old station at Agness, 35 miles up the Rogue River from Gold Beach.     For those of you familiar with the Tiller Ranger Station there is a good write up on that place with pictures and many more.   

There were some Forest Service cabins in wilderness areas.   These cabins always intrigued me as I would give thought of what it would be like to work out of one of these remote places.  When I worked as a seasonal recreational aide on the Summit District of the Stanislaus National Forest in 1970 there were three or four cabins along with corrals in the Emigrant Wilderness used by wilderness rangers on horseback and trail crews.   They were shown on Forest maps along with the trails.   When not occupied by Forest Service personnel they were subject to vandalism by the public.   There was a cabin in Marble Valley in the middle of the Marble Mountain Wilderness, not sure it is still there.   The Trinity Alps Wilderness had a few cabins, some were used by livestock people who had grazing allotments and some were private cabins on mining claims.   Most of these cabins in the Trinity Alps were not shown on maps, except for an old abandoned pack station, called Trinity Summit Guard Station.  Not sure how many of these cabins still exist.   One of the most classic wilderness ranger stations is the Moose Creek Ranger Station in the middle of the Selway-Bitterroot Wilderness in Idaho.    Never have been there.   

 

Another good book about the early settlements in the Rogue River Canyon is ILLAHE by Kay Atwood.   There are many pictures and maps of old miner’s cabins, trails and small farms where early pioneers scratched out a living in what is now the Wild Rogue River Wilderness.   Stories of bachelor miners living off venison, beans, coffee and tobacco in their one room cabins up some dry gulch off the beaten trail.  Some of these original pioneers came from the Klamath River area over the Siskiyou Mountains ending up at the confluence of the Illinois River and Rogue River near the present day community of Agness.   Some of these cabins have been preserved including the Billings Ranch at Mule Creek.      

The Bohemia Mining District on the Cottage Grove District of the Umpqua National Forest is a unique area to explore.  Many of the buildings are gone, except for the old post office building as I remember.  There are still some working mines in the vicinity.   The Musick Guard Station was constructed in 1934 by the Civilian Conservation Corp to provide fire protection and maintenance of trails in the mining district.  It has been preserved and is available for the public to rent.

During the winter of 1972, while working on the Orleans Ranger District a co-worker and I drove up to the Red River Ranger Station on the Nez Perce National Forest in Idaho to look at a job opening there.    The nearest town was Elk City, 13 miles away with a population of 200.    There was a foot of snow on the ground, it was cold and desolate.  It made Orleans look civilized.   Neither one of us applied for the job.    The Red River Station closed in 1998 and was consolidated with the Elk City Ranger Station.   Always have to wonder where life would have taken me if I ended up there?