A dark green Toyota pickup with a roof tent parked in tall dry grass as mist closes in.

Forest Service cabin or lookout

Brents Beach Cabin

Forest Service cabin or lookout in Tongass National Forest, Sitka County, Alaska. 82 feet. 8.4 miles from Sitka city and.

Managed by
Forest Service Tongass National Forest
Elevation
82 ft USGS elevation model, at the mapped point
Sites
1 1 standard non-electric
Hookups
None listed
Reservations
Recreation.gov
County
Sitka County

Overview

Brent's Beach Cabin is located on the eastern shore of Kruzof Island in Crab Bay in the Tongass National Forest, 15 miles northwest of Sitka, Alaska. The cabin is open year-round and makes an excellent base to experience this beautiful corner of Alaska. Fred's Creek Cabin is 5 miles south.

The original A-frame cabin located at this site was donated by a former Forest Service district ranger in memory of his teenage son, Brent, who along with two friends, drowned in Sitka Sound while halibut fishing in the early 1970s. In 1985, the current cabin replaced the well-worn A-frame.

This is a remote location. The cabin can be accessed only by boat or helicopter, weather permitting. Visitors are responsible for their own travel arrangements and safety, and must bring many of their own amenities.

Recreation

Visitors enjoy beachcombing, sunbathing and sculpting in the sands in front of the cabin, saltwater fishing in the bay and hunting deer in-season in the surrounding forest. Volcanic features are a 10-minute hike north of the cabin. Be sure to bring a compass. For information about fishing and hunting permits and seasons, visit the Alaska Department of Fish and Game website.

Facilities

The one-room, Pan-abode-style cabin sleeps six and is furnished with two double plywood bunks and two single plywood bunks (no mattresses). The cabin includes a wood stove, axe or splitting mail, a table and benches, cooking counter, a broom and an outhouse toilet.

Guests should bring sleeping bags and pads, a cooking stove, pots, pans, plates, utensils, food, toilet paper, a lantern, garbage bags, a fire extinguisher, fire starter, raingear and rubber boots.

Water is available from the nearby inlet stream. Treat all water before using. It is recommended that visitors bring their own water.

A mooring buoy is provided on a first-come, first-served basis for boat anchorage. It can be used by cabin visitors or general forest users. Cabin reservation does not include exclusive use of the buoy. Mooring buoys are configured using a 4200-lb concrete block with 90 feet of 7/8th-inch stud link chain. Mariners are responsible for determining how suitable an anchoring system is for the size of their craft.

Click here for more cabin information and maps.

Natural Features

The cabin sits just inside timberline on a beautiful, sandy beach facing Crab Bay and is surrounded by a dense forest of spruce and hemlock. Brown bears frequent the area.

The description, directions and fees are the Forest Service’s own words, from its record on Recreation.gov.

What people do here

  • camping
  • fishing
  • hiking
  • hunting

The land around Brents Beach Cabin

The ringed pin is this cabin or lookout; the others are its nearest neighbours. Switch on forest roads or BLM routes to see the way in.

Interactive map. Drag to pan, scroll or pinch to zoom, and select any point to see which agency manages the land. Arrow keys pan and the plus and minus keys zoom when the map has focus. A list of every state with its share of federal land is on the Explore page.

Map layers

Layers
Base map
Legend

Federal land, by managing agency

  • Bureau of Land Management (BLM)
  • US Forest Service (USFS)
  • National Park Service (NPS)
  • US Fish and Wildlife (USFW)
  • Bureau of Reclamation (USBR)
  • Department Of Defense (DOD)
  • Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA)
  • Other Federal
  • State
  • Local
  • Alaska Native Lands (Patented or Interim Conveyed)
  • Alaska Native Allotment

Federal campgrounds, by agency

  • Forest Service
  • Bureau of Land Management
  • National Park Service
  • Army Corps of Engineers
  • Reclamation, Fish and Wildlife and others

State and local land (USGS PAD-US)

  • State land
  • County and city land
  • Regional agency or district
  • Land trust or conservancy

Gaps with no tint inside public land are private parcels, often old mining claims and homesteads. They are not open to the public.

Dashed clay lines on the base map are unpaved tracks from OpenStreetMap. They show what exists on the ground, not what is legal to drive.

Select any point to see who manages the land.

Boundaries are approximate and land status changes. This map is a planning aid, not a survey or a statement of access. Confirm routes, closures and camping rules with the managing office.

Source: Recreation Information Database (Recreation.gov), record updated February 25, 2026. Elevation from the USGS 3D Elevation Program. Seasons, fees, water and fire rules change; the managing office has the final word.