Patterson Guard Station
Modoc National Forest, CAPatterson Guard Station isn't camping — it's renting a piece of Forest Service history. This 1921 fire guard station, restored in 2022, sits at 7,080 feet on the edge of a meadow surrounded by aspen, fir, and pine. You get a real cabin with bunks, a wood stove, and propane appliances, but you bring your own water and bedding.
Campground Details
- 💵Fee per Night
- $75
- 📋Reservations
- Reservation Required
- 🏔️Elevation
- 7,112 ft
- 📍GPS
- 41.19776, -120.18868
- 🌤️Best Seasons
- summer, fall
- 🐾Pets Allowed
- No
- 📞Phone
- 530-233-5811
- 🗺️Address
- CA
Amenities
The Station
The guard station served as a staffed fire office until 1981, and the restoration kept its working character. Inside you'll find one bunk bed, two convertible chair-beds, pots and pans, a new refrigerator, and an oven/range running on propane. The wood-burning stove gets firewood provided, but you're responsible for drinking water — none available on-site, though non-potable water may be. An outhouse sits about 100 feet from the front door.
The large parking area handles horse trailers, small RVs, and camper trailers, though there are no hookups. Maximum occupancy is eight people, but realistically four can sleep comfortably. Check-in is 2pm, check-out 11am.
The Setting
Just steps from the Summit Trail and a quarter-mile from the South Warner Wilderness boundary, Patterson makes sense as a basecamp for wilderness trips or horse packing. The meadow setting puts you in classic Warner Mountains terrain — dry south slopes with lodgepole and ponderosa pine, wetter north slopes with fir, and aspen along the streams where corn lilies grow five feet tall before summer dries them out.
The Warner Mountains mark the northwestern edge of Nevada's basin and range country, shaped by volcanism that ended 2-3 million years ago. The dramatic eastern face shows best from Surprise Valley.
What's Around
If your group exceeds the station's sleeping capacity, Patterson Campground sits adjacent with six developed sites at $15 per night. Blue Lake, nine miles west, has a boat ramp, dock, and 40+ campsites. The 10 mph speed limit keeps it mellow; serious boaters head to West Valley Reservoir instead. Cedarville lies 31 miles north on County Road 1 for restaurants and groceries.