In the early days of Forest Service guard work, guard station locations were chosen based on their access to good grazing for the many riding and pack horses that assisted and transported forest guards and their equipment. Big Elk Guard Station sits on the fringe of Big Elk Meadow, a grassy expanse that floods to a shallow pond in the spring and dries out in the summer, providing good grazing for a dozen or more horses. Stroll across the meadow, and you can see Mt. McLoughlin (9,495 feet above sea level) and the edge of a 20,000 year old lava flow from Brown Mountain. The surrounding forest, which includes lodgepole pine, quaking aspen, Shasta red fir and Douglas fir, add to the incredible beauty of the site.
Big Elk Guard Station, a rustic log cabin within a fenced yard, is located just off of Forest Road 37, the main access route through the east side of the beautiful Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. The fully furnished cabin has two upper-story bunk rooms that are reached by a double landing staircase (the stairway is steep, and young children would require assistance going up and down). The first floor rooms include a large, comfortable living room with a mortared-rock fireplace (firewood is provided), and a well-equipped kitchen with a table and chairs, a dry sink, and an electric range and refrigerator. The original fir flooring remains intact. There are electric lights and heat throughout the cabin.
No potable water is available on site; visitors must bring plenty of water for drinking, cooking and washing. Water can be obtained at the North Fork Campground approximately 1 mile north on Forest Road 37. A vault toilet is located near the cabin. A picnic table and fire ring are available for outdoor dining. An outbuilding, circa mid-1930s and built by the Civilian Conservation Corp, acts as a storage shed for firewood.
History
Built in 1929 to replace a 1907 cabin, Big Elk Guard Station is the oldest continuously used administrative site within the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. For many decades it served as summer headquarters for solitary forest "guards" who built forest trails, fought forest fires, and patrolled the forest on horseback. Most recently the site was used to house Forest Service seasonal fire crews. The cabin is the last remaining example of Forest Service log construction on the Forest. The cabin and associated outbuildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
