Johnson Creek Guard Station
October 2026
About
Overview
Johnson Creek Guard Station was built in 1922 and offers a charming mountain respite with modern conveniences. The cabin offers nearly everything needed for a pleasant and comfortable stay.
Peak season for the cabin is typically early June through late September. It can be accessed by most vehicles via dirt and gravel roads, but trailers are not recommended.
Recreation
The cabin is near several trailheads into the Frank Church - River of No Return Wilderness. These non-motorized trails are popular for hikers, mountain bikers and equestrians. Off-road vehicle trails are also nearby. Click here for an Idaho OHV safety message.
The South Fork Salmon River and Johnson Creek offer opportunities for fishing. Berry picking and hunting are popular pastimes in season.
Facilities
The rustic cabin has two twin beds with mattresses in the loft, as well as two cots, a couch and a heater. A full size bed is in separate bedroom. The kitchen is equipped with a table and four chairs, an electric range and a refrigerator. Cookware and utensils are provided, including saucepans, pots and lids, plates, bowls, cups, mugs, utensils, knives, a cutting board, salad bowl and cookie sheet. A modern bathroom with a flush toilet and shower is available. Two picnic tables, a campfire ring and two grills are located outside behind the cabin. Guests must bring garbage bags to pack out their own trash. Bedding, lanterns or flashlights, towels and emergency drinking water are not provided.
Natural Features
Johnson Creek sits in a pretty mountain meadow a stone's throw from scenic Johnson Creek, a tributary of the South Fork Salmon River. Mountain slopes covered in dense pine forest surround the cabin.
Wildlife watchers may see deer, elk, bear and moose. Bald eagles are often spotted soaring overhead.
Nearby Attractions
The tiny community of Yellow Pine is a few miles north of the cabin and offers limited services. The popular Yellow Pine Music & Harmonica Festival is held annually in August.
Amenities
Phone: 208-382-7400
Is JOHNSON CREEK GUARD STATION fully booked?
A campground showing no availability is almost never full for good. People cancel — plans change, weather turns, someone books three weekends and keeps one — and the site goes straight back into the booking system, usually without warning and often at odd hours. The reason sold-out campgrounds feel impossible is not that sites never free up; it is that nobody is watching at the moment they do.
CampHawk watches JOHNSON CREEK GUARD STATION in Cascade, ID for you. We recheck it every 15 seconds, around the clock, and the moment a site opens we send a text, an email and a push notification — and on Recreation.gov we can put the site straight into your cart, so it is held while you get to your phone.
Searching is free and needs no account — the calendar above is live right now. Watching JOHNSON CREEK GUARD STATION for cancellations is the paid part.