Oregon / Crook County / Ochoco National Forest

Cold Springs Cabin

Closed — Closed for the season. The cabin operates mid-May through mid-October and must be reserved in advance through Recreation.gov. Unavailable the first Tuesday of each month during the operating season for water testing, cleaning, and maintenance.

About

Cold Springs Guard Station, constructed in 1934, is a historic Forest Service site nestled in the Ochoco National Forest that once served as the switchboard station connecting phone calls between fire lookouts and guard stations during summer months. The cabin replaced an earlier structure destroyed by fire and housed the fire guard and family until the 1990s, with remnants of its past still visible today. The multi-room cabin provides comfortable accommodations for up to eight guests with three bedrooms complete with beds, two bathrooms (one with tub, one with shower) featuring flush toilets, and a living room. The kitchen is equipped with a propane stove, propane refrigerator, and basic utensils and cleaning supplies. Propane powers the lights, heat, and hot water, supplemented by solar lighting. Drinking water is available from a hand pump. Outside amenities include a picnic table, fire ring, and horseshoe pit, with ample parking for up to eight vehicles. The cabin sits in an upland meadow near Big Summit Prairie, an area renowned for colorful wildflower displays including wild parsley, bitterroot, cobalt blue meadow larkspur, Peck's mariposa lily, and brilliant red Indian paintbrush among sagebrush and old-growth ponderosa pine with quaking aspen. Several bands of wild free-roaming horses inhabit the forest, with an interpretive sign along Forest Service Road 42 providing more information. Other wildlife includes squirrels, chipmunks, antelope, deer, elk, geese, hawks, osprey, eagles, sandhill cranes, and great horned owls. Nearby activities include wildlife watching, mountain biking, road biking, hiking, fishing, and hunting.

Directions

From Prineville, travel approximately 13 miles east on Highway 26. Turn right at the junction to Ochoco Ranger Station (County Road 123) and travel 8 miles to the junction of Forest Service Roads 22 and 42. Stay right to merge onto Forest Service Road 42 and travel approximately 19 miles. After crossing the North Fork of the Crooked River, turn left onto Forest Service Road 30 and travel approximately 1.5 miles. Turn right onto Forest Service Road 100 at the signs to Cold Springs Guard Station, then right again as the road forks and proceed through the gate. Paved roads most of the way with the last 2 miles on good dirt road.

Nearby Campgrounds