Suiattle Guard Station
4Heads up4 fires, nearest 23 mi
- Right now
- Nobody has saidNo season, no closure, no bookings to read
- Sites
- 1All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 15 notices
In the agency’s own words
Set near the Suiattle River and surrounded by mountain peaks and old-growth forest, the Suiattle Guard Station (pronounced "Sue-attle") is a historic log cabin that was constructed in 1913 by Tommy Thompson, Assistant Ranger of the Suiattle-Finney District, to house a forest guard. Because of budget limitations at that time, the Forest Service often relied upon rangers to construct their own stations. It is a testament to Ranger Thompson’s skill that the cabin survives to this day as one of the oldest administrative buildings in the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest. The Suiattle Guard Station was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1990. The cabin is accessible by car. While some creature comforts are provided, guests will need to bring a few of their own amenities to ensure a comfortable and enjoyable stay at this primitive facility. Keep reading
Recreation
Several hiking and equestrian trails crisscross the area, which are accessible from Suiattle River Road (Forest Service Road 26). Anglers can also find fishing spots nearby. Federally protected under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act, the Suiattle River is popular among whitewater enthusiasts. River runners paddle Class 2 and 3 rapids through lush, forested scenery, with views of nearby snow-capped peaks. Since the headwaters of the river originate at a glacier, the water has a milky appearance. July and August are the best times for rafting.
Facilities
The cabin can accommodate four people with one full size bed with mattress and one trundle bed. Other amenities include a table with benches, a chair, battery powered lantern, cookware, dishes, utensils, and a wood stove for heat. An outdoor privy (primitive vault toilet) is located behind the guard station. Firewood is available outside the cabin. The food preparation area consists of a propane stove top (located on the enclosed back porch) and kitchen sink basin (no running water). Propane is provided. There is room on-site for up to four tents and two RVs. No electrical hook-ups are available. The water source consists of a spring that is run into a small collection box on the hillside behind the cabin and piped to a spigot behind the cabin. This water is non-potable and is to be used only for washing and fire safety. Drinking water is not available. Guests must bring enough water for drinking and cooking. Other items to bring include food, a cooler to store perishables, a backup light source, pillows and bedding or sleeping bags, towels, dish soap, matches, a first aid kit, toilet paper and garbage bags. All trash and food must be packed out, and guests are expected to clean the cabin before leaving.
Natural Features
Hemmed in by several designated wilderness areas, the Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest showcases rugged peaks, sparkling alpine lakes and old-growth forests. The charming log cabin sits on a gently sloping lawn at the edge of the forest. Wildlife is abundant, and guests may catch a glimpse of black bears, bobcats, elk or bald eagles, and coyote. Contact Info For facility specific information, please call (530) 932-0242.
Nearby Attractions
Darrington, located 26 miles from the cabin, has a grocery store, sporting goods store and gas station for last minute items.
What the agency tells you
This historical building provides a primitive overnight lodging experience for guests. Please treat the cabin and grounds with the utmost care and respect.
Guests will need to bring food, a cooler to store perishables, flashlights, pillows and bedding or sleeping bags, towels, dish soap, matches, a first aid kit, toilet paper and garbage bags.
The cabin sleeps a maximum of four guests. Additional space is available outside for up to 4 tents and two RVs, however there is only one toilet on-site so a maximum of 12 people are allowed per reservation.
Everything else this campground posts · 12
There is no trash service provided, so please be preprepared to pack out all garbage.
Guests are expected to leave the facility and grounds clean when they depart. Basic cleaning supplies are provided. Doors and windows should be locked and all personal items removed upon departure.
No potable water is available at this site; guests must bring their own supply of drinking water.
A guide to operating the woodstove, cooktop, and other helpful info for staying at the facility is available on-site and may be emailed in advance of your visit by request at 530-932-0242.
Please contact 530-932-0242 prior to your visit with any questions about the facility or access – there is no cell service at the cabin and the nearest reliable service is in Darrington. The Camp Host at Buck Creek Campground (if available) may also be able to assist with questions or immediate concerns.
Please call the 530-932-0242 to confirm key pick up instructions; key pick up will be at a lock box located at Buck Creek Campground (approximately 1 mile from the Suiattle Guard Station). The lockbox combination will be provided by email prior to arrival or by calling.
To promote privacy during your visit we encourage you to keep the cabin’s driveway gate closed. Please secure the cabin if you are away during your stay.
Extreme caution must be taken when using lanterns, cook stoves or any other appliances with open flame.
Keep the building and grounds clean to deter squirrel, mice, rats, bears and other wildlife from the area.
Don't Move Firewood: Please protect Pacific Northwest forests by preventing the spread of invasive species. Firewood can carry insects and diseases that can threaten the health of our western forests. You can make a difference by obtaining and burning your firewood near your camping destination. Visit Dontmovefirewood.org for further information.
The cabin is a no-smoking facility.
Learn more about Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 1 · 1 cabin
- Hookups
- None
- Accessible sites
- None listed
Facilities
- Toilets
- Vault Toilets
- “…for heat. An outdoor privy (primitive vault toilet) is located behind the guard station. Firewood is…”
- Firewood
- Mentioned
Around the campground
- On the water
- Lake, River
- Fishing
- Hiking
- Historic site
- Horseback riding
- Hunting
- Water sports
- Wildlife viewing
No reading yet, book on recreation.gov
Every site here is reservable, and the record lists none held back for anyone who drives up.
No availability snapshot inside the last 36 hours, so this page draws nothing rather than ageing a reading into fiction.
Watch for a cancellation
Full? Watch it.
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 12
What you actually pay
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 5
rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Oct 1, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
1 sites · the site map
All 1 sites
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 1 of the 1 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
Measured shade is NLCD Tree Canopy Cover 2024 (USDA Forest Service / MRLC) read at the site’s own coordinate, 27% canopy or more, and only for the sites the agency gave no Shade value. It never changes the agency’s own shaded count beside it.
| AREA SUIATTLE GUARD STATION | S1 | cabin nonelectric | under 10 ft | $125 |
OpenStreetMap has no toilet mapped within 1 km of this campground, so no site here carries a toilet distance. That’s a gap in the map, not a finding about the campground.
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Buck Creek CampgroundMt. Baker National Forest · 0.6 mi
Sulphur Creek CampgroundMt. Baker National Forest · 5.8 mi
Bedal CampgroundMt. Baker National Forest · 12 mi
Clear Creek CampgroundMt. Baker National Forest · 12 mi
Mineral Park CampgroundMt. Baker National Forest · 16 miBeaver Creek Group CampgroundMt. Baker National Forest · 16 miFrom Darrington, head north on WA-530 for 7.5 miles. Cross the Sauk River Bridge, then immediately turn right on Suiattle River Road (FS-26). Proceed 15 miles east (10 miles paved followed by 5 miles of gravel road) to Buck Creek Campground to retrieve the Suiattle Guard Station Keys from the lock box located at the Campground Kiosk. Continue east along the Suiattle River for one mile from the Campground Entrance to the Suiattle Guard Station driveway on the left (there is no sign at this intersection). Follow the driveway through the locked gate (key provided) and arrive at the cabin after 200 yards.
The weather
the next four days · the thirty-year normal
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Darrington, WA
Typical weather
Typical October night 41°F, day 58°F.
Coldest month of the year: typical February night 32°F, below freezing. Bring a bag rated colder than that, and expect ice in the water bottle.
Daily high and lowDays with 0.10 in or more
A normal is the 1991-2020 average for the month, not a forecast: about half of all Augusts are colder than the August line. The seven-day forecast above answers the other question.
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it
Roadless country, and what’s coming for it
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Suiattle Guard Station is in Washington’s 8th congressional district. Its representative, Kim Schrier (D), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: A. See every public-lands vote →