Packer’s Cabin was originally built around 1930 and served as the headquarters for the Forest Service packer who supplied lookouts and field crews by horse or mule pack trains. Today, however, visitors no longer need to hitch up a team of mules and trek for days to enjoy this three-room cabin nestled in a natural setting on Long Ridge.
Dappled sunlight filters through the forest’s thick canopy and splashes light on a butter-yellow structure that has been renovated and is now barrier free. The accessible facility has ramps, decks, wide doorways and door handles to make the cabin as accessible as possible to anyone wishing to take a step back in history and live the life of a forest ranger.
The cabin comfortably houses up to twelve people, and is furnished with a wood-burning stove (firewood is provided), a work surface for food preparation, one double bunk and ten single bunks with foam pads, and a table and chairs. An outdoor, barrier-free toilet, picnic table and fire ring are located near the cabin.
Visitors should bring camping equipment and sleeping bags. There is no electricity or drinking water at the site, so bring a lantern and plenty of water for cooking, drinking and washing. A natural spring is located nearby, but the water is not recommended for human consumption unless first brought to a rolling boil for no less than five minutes.
- Availability: Packer’s Cabin is available for rent year April 15 though November 15, weather permitting.
- Price and Capacity: $40 per night per group of up to twelve occupants. Fees are used directly for the maintenance and preservation of the cabin.
- Reservations: There is a 10-day minimum advance window for reservations. The maximum length stay is seven consecutive nights. Phone 1-877-444-6777 or visit www.recreation.gov
History
Recorded history of the Packer’s Cabin site goes back to 1889, when the area was enclosed within a Native American Allotment; Van Pelt and early pioneer settlers married into the Chetco band.
The Forest Service has used the site since at least 1914. That year, the phone line to service the Long Ridge Lookout was completed and the spring at the cabin was probably used for a camp. Telephone line insulators can still be found. While the cabin’s date of construction remains unclear, the current structure is believed to have been built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s to replace an earlier structure
Back in the 1930s and 40s, many of fire lookouts were in extremely remote locations, often only accessible by horse, mule or foot, as there were no roads to these sites. The men and women staffing the lookouts lived there the entire fire season, watching throughout the daylight hours for lightning storms, wet or dry, and they couldn’t leave their post to make the day or two journey back to town to replenish supplies. They were dependent on the packer, who would make his rounds with mules laden with food, cooking supplies, and tools, as well as a greatly welcomed break in routine and an opportunity for conversation.
For information about accessible recreation opportunities in Pacific Northwest National Forests, visit http://www.fs.usda.gov/goto/r6/accessiblerecreation
