Imnaha Guard Station

Overview

Imnaha Guard Station is located in the southwest portion of Oregon's Cascade Range, at an elevation of 3,800 feet. The facility offers a remote setting and most of the amenities needed for a comfortable stay. This cabin does not feature indoor lighting so guests will need to bring lanterns or flashlights.

Recreation

Hiking and Birdwatching are popular activities among guests visiting this cabin. 

Bird songs from nuthatches, chickadees, and Steller's jays are common at Imnaha Guard Station. Varied thrush are around and can be identified with their distinct calls that lift from the forest floor. Occasionally the loud drumming of the dilapidated woodpecker can be heard, the largest woodpecker in North America.

Sky Lakes wilderness is within a short drive from the cabin and can be accessed from Blue Canyon Trailhead and Alta Lake Trailhead. The Lower South Fork trail is also a short drive from Imnaha Cabin and has multiple trailheads to choose from.

Facilities

The Imnaha Guard House has a living room, bedroom, bathroom and kitchen, and is designed to comfortably sleep 4 occupants. The bedroom is furnished with a full-size bed, a small closet and one dresser. The kitchen is equipped with a table and chairs, sink, refrigerator, stove, and basic cooking utensils. The bathroom has running water, shower and flush toilet.

The heater, stove and refrigerator 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.

The cabin features a lava-rock fireplace in the front room. There are no guarantees of firewood. Visitors should bring lanterns, sleeping bags, towels and matches. A very small Forest Service campground called Imnaha, is located within sight of the cabin but will remain closed for the season.

Natural Features

Imnaha Guard Station is surrounded by an old-growth forest composed of Douglas-fir, white fir, incense cedar, ponderosa pine, sugar pine, and western white pine. A notably large, 300-year-old Douglas-fir, known as "The Big Tree," towers above the canopy near the Imnaha cabin.

Imnaha Springs is just up a trail behind the cabin and forms separate rivulets that flow through yellow monkey flowers and moss. The large volume of water that bubbles from the springs is crystal clear and ice cold.

Contact Info

This location is unstaffed. To speak with our main office for general information, please call: (541) 560-3400.

Nearby Attractions

Diamond Lake Resort, Crater Lake National Park, Lost Creek Lake, Rogue-Umpqua Scenic Byway, National Falls, Rogue Gorge, Natural Bridge and Mount McLoughlin are all wonderful sights to see.

Camp site features

Across 1 camp site:

  • Picnic table: all 1 sites
  • Largest party: 6 people

Directions

From Butte Falls, OR, drive east on the Butte Falls - Fish Lake Highway (County Road 821). Less than a mile from town, turn left onto the Butte Fall - Prospect Highway (County Road 992) and travel north on County Road 992. Go 9 miles on County Road 992 to Forest Road 34. Turn right, go 8 miles on Forest Road 34 until its junction with Forest Road 37. Travel north / northeast on Forest Road 37 for 4.5 miles. Take Imnaha Campground turn-off and continue through campground to find the cabin. From Prospect, OR, at the Prospect Hotel turn east onto the Butte Falls - Prospect Highway (County Road 992), travel 2 or 3 miles and take a left onto Forest Road 37, which continues south to Imnaha Campground turn-off. Wheeled-vehicle access is possible only from late spring through early fall, depending on snow conditions.

Stay Limit

Check in from 2 PM, check out by 12 PM.

Reviews

12 reviews
5 stars
10
4 stars
1
2 stars
1
Gregory T
Loop:Area Imnaha Guard Station
Site:
Reviewed a month ago
Wonderful find. Amazing place. We found plenty of wood, and water heater, stove and fridge operational. Clean enough, but in need of a deep cleaning.
Mike Y
Loop:Area Imnaha Guard Station
Site:
Reviewed a month ago
Great time on the 4th of July Might note …… Garbage can in the cabin on as well as the fire place tools and fire extinguisher Cant believe people can do that stuff Also locks have been cut on the gerage shed Other wise we had a great time in the quite of the wilderness
Kurt E
Loop:Area Imnaha Guard Station
Site:
Reviewed 10 months ago
Cabin was stocked better than expected. We pre-prepared our dinners not knowing what utensils were available. We brought our own eating wares which weren't needed. We took 2 LED rechargeable lanterns. There wasn't much sun but was still able to get enough recharge to make it through the 3 days and 2 nights. Very quiet setting and dark at night with trees. Two mouse traps were set plus we brought our own. Mice might be in walls but not running around on the floor. No mice caught using peanut butter as bait. Bed was ok but sofa,for me. was very uncomfortable.
Vanessa W
Loop:Area Imnaha Guard Station
Site:
Reviewed a year ago
Three adults and 2 kids (15 & 8) Great cabin to stay at! Well stocked, including board games in the closet. We went up the springs and explored the creek a bit. It was too hot to explore more. We’ll definitely be back in cooler weather. We didn’t use the shower due to the mildew smell but it was great having a flush toilet. The water from the faucet was icy cold and tasted great. We had an issue with the fridge not getting very cold but the freezer worked great. We refrozen the ice packs from our cooler and put them in the fridge to help keep the temp down. Beautiful drive up to the cabin. It’s an open range area so we saw cows near the cabin several times and deer on our way out. One of the living room windows won’t open and a kitchen window wouldn’t stay open but there were enough that opened to get the cabin cooled off during the night. There’s enough room in the living room to add a cot if needed. We enjoyed the books and information left in the binders. The hot water heater and fridge had to be turned on. Instructions for the fridge are listed near the buttons. For the hot water heater, the instructions are in the manual. Overall a great stay!
Christina P
Loop:Area Imnaha Guard Station
Site:
Reviewed a year ago
This is such a cool place! The cabin is very comfortable (though the water heater was not working when we stayed...fine for one night but probably something one would want if staying longer!) and the area is so beautiful. The spring was amazing! We walked up to the origin point and it was just so beautiful. I wish we could have stayed longer--I definitely want to go back! It was very cool to read about some of the history of the cabin, available in the books and folder left there. We saw notes from previous guests that there had been break-ins, but no issues for us on our short stay. This place is definitely worth visiting!
Kelli F
Loop:Area Imnaha Guard Station
Site:
Reviewed 2 years ago
Rustic but just what I wanted!
Availability

See the Camp Sites section below to find detailed booking availability.

Popularity: Moderate

Busiest in August, when about 51% of guest capacity is reserved. Based on 11 years of reservations.

Camp Sites

Nearby Campgrounds