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

Forest Service cabin or lookout

Brush Creek Work Center Barrack

Forest Service cabin or lookout in Medicine Bow-Routt NFs & Thunder Basin NG, Carbon County, Wyoming. 8,273 feet. 16.1 miles from Riverside.

Managed by
Forest Service Medicine Bow-Routt NFs & Thunder Basin NG
Elevation
8,273 ft USGS elevation model, at the mapped point
Sites
1 1 cabin electric
Hookups
Water, Sewer
Reservations
Recreation.gov
County
Carbon County

Overview

The cabin offers an ideal winter playground, with a snowy landscape perfect for recreation. Snowmobiling, skiing and snowshoeing are popular activities. The Brush Creek Cross-Country Ski Trails are made up of loop trails winding through aspen, lodgepole pine stands and reclaimed clear-cuts. The frequency of trail grooming depends on weather conditions and equipment.

Recreation

After the Wyoming Highway Department closes their gate for the winter the highway becomes a popular snowmobile trail. The Wyoming State Trails map shows over 300 miles of groomed and ungroomed trail. A new map is created each year.

Other recreational opportunities in the area include cross country skiing on the trails behind the Barracks and sledding at the old Ryan Park Ski Area.

Facilities

This bi-level house can accommodate up to eight people comfortably in four bedrooms with a set of twin beds in each. The small living room has a TV, but reception is weak. The large kitchen and dining area is equipped with a refrigerator, stove, microwave, basic kitchen utensils and cooking supplies. Two bathrooms include showers and flush toilets. The house has electricity and heat.

Guests should bring a few of their own supplies, including food, sleeping bags, pillows, towels, dish soap, extra toilet paper and garbage bags. Additional light sources should be brought for emergencies. All trash and food should be packed out, and guests are expected to clean the cabin before leaving.

Natural Features

The Snowy Range is aptly named. The Barracks, at 8,100 feet, receives early autumn snow and by Halloween the snow is beginning to accumulate. Eight miles up from the Barracks is the Highway 130 winter closure gate.

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

What people do here

  • camping
  • wildlife viewing
  • winter sports

The land around Brush Creek Work Center Barrack

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.