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Johnson Guard Station is located 30 miles east of Soda Springs, Idaho, on a site that was established in 1910. The current building was constructed in 1934, and is named after James J. Johnson, who served as ranger of the Georgetown Ranger District from 1907-1913. It's been used for various purposes over the years, from serving as summer headquarters to housing work crews.
The cabin is accessible by car in warmer months and by snowmobile in winter. The cabin provides a few conveniences, so guests should be prepared to bring the supplies and equipment they need to make their stay more comfortable.
The Bear Canyon OHV Trail is about 1 mile north of the guard station ([Idaho OHV safety message](http://www.recreation.gov/marketing.do?goto=/safety.htm)). Hikers and mountain bikers will also find trails nearby. The area surrounding the cabin is a playground for snowmobilers and skiers in the winter months.
Anglers can fish in nearby Diamond Creek. The surrounding area also attracts game and game bird hunters.
The guard station has a maximum capacity of 15 people. One sleeping room is available with four single beds.. Guests need to provide bedding and sleeping pads. The kitchen has a gas stove for cooking and a dining table with chairs. A gas furnace heats the cabin. Propane is provided for the lights, cook stove and heater. A vault toilet and picnic table are located outside.
No water or electricity is available at the cabin. Guests will need to supply their own water for drinking, washing and cooking. Bedding/sleeping pads, cookware, kitchen utensils and emergency supplies are not provided.
Guests are required to bring garbage bags to pack out their trash. The cabin should be cleaned before leaving, so guests should bring some cleaning supplies.
The cabin sits in a meadow at an elevation of 6,500 feet surrounded by the peaks of Dry Ridge and the Webster subrange in southeastern Idaho. Stands of aspen and lodgepole pine dot the landscape.
Wildlife in the Caribou-Targhee National Forest includes black bears, wolves, elk, moose, mule deer, bison, grizzly bears, mountain lions and pronghorn ([bear safety tips](http://www.recreation.gov/marketing.do?goto=/wildlifeAlert.html)).
From Soda Springs, take Highway 34 north approximately 12 miles to the China Hat turnoff (Blackfoot River Narrows). This road will follow Blackfoot River for another 11 miles to a junction; there is a Forest Service sign at this point. Take the right fork (Caribou National Forest Road 102) southeast for another 10 miles to the guard station. The road will turn into Diamond Creek Road. Maps are available upon request at the district office.
This place is amazing. I went for a few days and loved it. The cabin (Guard Station) was clean, had a big propane tank, and an over already there. There were lots of mosquitoes, but if you have bug spray, it shouldn't bother you too much. I enjoyed my stay very much. There are bed frames, but nothing on the beds. If you're planning on staying there on the beds, bring an air mattress or memory foam pads. The outside of the guard station is beautiful. There is nice scenery around the Johnson Guard Station. Inside the cabin there are beds, a picnic table, a stove, a heater, and much more. This is a great place to stay if you want some adventure and to use a little cabin and disconnect from the world (Electronically). Also at the cabin is a sign saying that the water is untested. After a few days of trying to find the water spicket, we decided to go up what looked like a small outline of tire tracks. When going up there, we found the spicket. We also found a small shack further up the mountain. This place is also good if you would like to metal detect around it. Also that road makes a good mountain biking trail (for me is going down). I would recommend this to anyone who would like to stay in a cabin in the Caribou National Forest. I have added pictures from my stay here.
My husband and I love going to all the forest service cabins in Idaho. We decided to try this one out since we had never really been to that area before. The cabin itself was cute and the area around it was beautiful, but wow the inside was not clean at all. There were dead insects all over and rat poop all over on the beds. The smoke detector also would go off every 5 minutes saying the batteries were low, and we didn't have batteries for it so that was annoying and not safe. The outhouse was also very dirty. We were suppose to stay 2 nights but only ended up staying 1 and slept in the back of our jeep. We were also sad the cabin didn't have a guest log in book. We will not be going back to this cabin, especially since they are raising the price to $60. They need to have serious upkeep on this cabin.
I went up with a scout group and found the cabin to be clean and in decent shape. There was a second cabin that was locked that we couldn't enter so I cannot speak about the sanitation of that building. We were always within 30 minutes of something exciting and the camp site wasn't that bad. It had a mosquito problem but after a while it didn't bother us. There is a great amount of hiking and off-road mountain biking to be done here! It was a good spot that we easily spent 3 days in. There is lots of room for tents and many trees for hammocking. The outhouse wasn't that clean but none of these outhouses ever are. I had a wonderful experience here! Would go again!
