Bagby Guard Station

Infobox nrhp
name = Bagby Guard Station
nrhp_type =


caption =
location = Mount Hood National Forest
nearest_city = Estacada, Oregon
coordinates = coord|44.93583|-122.1725|display=title,inline
built = 1913
architect =
architecture = Rustic forest cabin
added = 1999
refnum = 99001088
governing_body = U.S. Forest Service

Bagby Guard Station is a rustic cabin located in the Mount Hood National Forest in western Oregon, United States. It is adjacent to Bagby Hot Springs. The guard station was originally built to house fire crews assigned to patrol the surrounding National Forest. The Bagby Guard Station is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

History

In the 1920s and 1930s, National Forests road networks were not well developed. To get to job sites, Forest Service employees often traveled many miles on foot or horseback, carrying all the equipment need to perform field work. This made it impractical for employees to make daily round-trips. To facilitate work at remote sites, the Forest Service built guard stations at strategic locations throughout the forest to house fire patrols and project crews.Jacoby, Jayson, [http://www.bakercityherald.com/news/story.cfm?story_no=3443 "Rustic Forest Service cabins available for rent"] , "Baker City Herald", Baker City, Oregon, 27 April 2006.]

After World War II, the Forest Service greatly expanded its road network, allowing employees to get to most National Forest areas within a few hours. As a result, guard stations lost their utility. The Forest Service found new uses for some stations, but most were demolished or abandon.

The Bagby Guard Station is located in the Mount Hood National Forest forty miles southeast of Estacada, Oregon, just outside the boundary of Bull of the Woods Wilderness area. It was built next to Bagby Hot Springs in 1913 by Phil Putz, the Forest Service guard assigned to the area. Putz also built a small storage shed adjacent to the cabin. In the years following its construction, the guard station was used as a barracks for Forest Service fire crews that patrolled the surrounding forest during the summer fire season. [http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/mthood/recreation/bagby-hot-springs.shtml "Bagby Hot Springs"] , Mount Hood National Forest, Unites States Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Sandy, Oregon, 7 March 2007.]

During the 1920s, summer fire crews built a barn, dam, bathhouse, and additional shelters at the site. However, all of these facilities are now gone. Over time, the original guard station fell into disrepair so the Forest Service built a new cabin for the Bagby guard in 1974. Because of its rustic architecture and the cabin’s unique historic value as an early Forest Service guard station, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1999. [http://www.archiplanet.org/wiki/Bagby_Guard_Station "Bagby Guard Station"] , "Archiplanet", http://www.archiplanet.org, 5 December 2006.] In 2006, volunteers from Northwest Forest Conservancy and Friends of Bagby worked with the Forest Service to repair and preserve the original Bagby Guard Station cabin. [http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/mthood/volunteering/timberline.shtml "Volunteering - Bagby Hot Spring"] , Mount Hood National Forest, Unites States Forest Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Sandy, Oregon, 14 March 2008.]

Structure

The Bagby Guard Station is located in a remote area of the Clackamas Ranger District on the western slope of the Cascade Mountains, at convert|2272|ft|m elevation. It is a rustic cabin surrounded by undisturbed old-growth forest of mainly Douglas-fir, western hemlock, and western red cedar. [ [http://www.brainygeography.com/features/OR.locale/bagbyhotspringsguardstatio.html "Bagby Hot Springs Guard Station Oregon"] , Brainy Geography, http://www.brainygeography.com, 2007.] [Sullivan, William L., Exploring Oregon’s Wild Areas, The Mountaineers Books, Seattle, Washington, 2002, p. 55.]

The guard station is a traditional log cabin structure with a wood shingle roof and a stone foundation. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/cheryl_hill/289509326/] It has a single room measuring 24 by convert|16|ft|m. The logs were cut and peeled on the site so the cabin blends into the surrounding forest landscape. The original shed still sits next to the guard station cabin. [http://www.flickr.com/photos/cheryl_hill/289509164/in/photostream/] Both historic structures were renovated in 2006. However, they are not open to the public. [ [http://members.aol.com/besthikes/bagby.html "Bagby Hot Spring"] , Northwest Hikers' Resource and Photo Gallery, www.members.aol.com/besthikes, 1999.]

In addition to the two historic structures, there are seven other building at the Bagby site. These include the new guard station and storage shed built in 1974. There are also three bathhouses built between 1983 and 1986 plus two outhouses for public use.

Recreation

The guard station is located in the middle of Bagby Hot Springs. There are three major springs and several minor outlets that make up Bagby Hot Springs. The largest spring flows twenty-four gallons per minute at 138 degrees Fahrenheit. The two secondary springs produce 15 gallons per minute at 136 degrees and 3 gallons per minute at 120 degrees. There are three bath houses at the site. The "Main Bathhouse" has five cedar log tubs each in its own rustic, but private room. Near by, the "Lower Bathhouse" has three log tubs and a large round tub located on an open deck. The "Upper Bathhouse" is located approximately convert|100|yd southeast of the Main Bathhouse. It has one large round tub on an open deck. Bagby Hot Springs are open for day-use only. Camping is not permitted at the hot springs or along the trail to Bagby.

The convert|27427|acre|km2|sing=on Bull of the Woods Wilderness is only about a half mile up the trail from guard station, so visitor can easily access the wilderness trail network from Bagby. Bull of the Woods Peak is at the center of a convert|68|mi|km|sing=on trail system. The Pansy Lake Trail takes hikers to peak’s convert|5523|ft|m|sing=on summit where an old lookout tower commands a panoramic view of the surrounding area. Wilderness trails lead to a dozen scenic lakes with native trout populations, Twin Lakes and Elk Lake are the most popular. The headwaters of the Collawash, Breitenbush, and Little North Santiam Rivers are all found in the Bull of the Woods Wilderness. [ [http://www.wilderness.net/index.cfm?fuse=NWPS&sec=wildView&wname=Bull%20of%20the%20Woods "Bull of the Woods Wilderness"] , Wilderness.net, College of Forestry and Conservation Wilderness Institute, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, 30 June 2008.]

Access

There is no road to Bagby Guard Station; visitors must hike a convert|1.5|mi|km|sing=on trail from a Forest Service parking area to get to the site. It is a relatively easy hike with only a convert|200|ft|m gain in of elevation along the way. The trail is maintained by the Forest Service and volunteers from the Northwest Forest Conservancy.

It is approximately convert|40|mi|km from Estacada to the Bagby trailhead. To get there from Estacada, take Highway 224 for approximately convert|26|mi|km to Ripplebrook Guard Station. Then follow Forest Service Road 46 for convert|4|mi|km to the junction with Forest Service Road 63. Turn right and follow Road 63 for convert|4|mi|km to Forest Service Road 70. Turn right onto Road 70 and follow it for convert|6|mi|km to the Bagby Trailhead. A $5 Forest Service permit is required to park at the trailhead. Bagby is normally open year around, however, access roads to the trailhead may be close after some winter snow storms.

References

External links

* [http://www.fs.fed.us/r6/mthood/ Mount Hood National Forest]