Barber Cabin (chugach National Forest, Ak)

Beautiful hike to a tranquil lake. Will definitely be back!

Barber Cabin was once again a cozy and accessible retreat. The saw and hatchet on site would help gather deadfall if needed, but we had hauled in enough firewood, with more left neatly at the cabin. Wood stove is great, with instructions in log book. Ice was thick and with little snow we enjoyed inspiring skating. Note that winter parking is before the bridge and could be better signed, but the trail is easy to find. We cleared some branches off the spruce fallen across the trail.

We both love this Lake and the cabin. Very peaceful to wind down. It has been 3 years or more that we had been there, very hard to get the reservation. The last time there the canoe was great, really wide and stable. Now the one that is there now is to small and very Tippys. Our last day there the lake was ruff and had white caps, could not go out before we hit the trail. We booked for 3 days but they were closing the park for road work Thursday night, so we missed a day. Still was a nice 2 day stay.

It's a very easy 3.5-mile hike from the Russian River campground trailhead on a wheelchair-accessible trail, about 350 feet of elevation gain. (If you have a cabin reservation, mention it to the people working at the campground entrance kiosk- your parking is supposed to be free.) The cabin and outhouse have ramps so it's a very low-effort way to get access to a Forest Service cabin. There's a canoe available for use, and there are paddles, life jackets, and cushions on site as well. The cabin has been recently renovated and spruced up so it's an all-around excellent camping experience. Fishing is reportedly good but we had no luck, but that probably says more about lack of effort and skill than anything else. We did have an interesting bear experience when a sub-adult brown bear came up as we were getting to sleep and put his paw on the window of the back door. Exciting! He then just wandered around the cabin for a few minutes before toddling off into the woods. Other than that, not much happened!

Beautiful scenery and an easy hike to get there. The cabin was clean, recently painted and refurbished with new windows. The canoe was a nice bonus and enjoyed paddling around the lake. We did not need the stove, but it is a nice feature for cooler weather.

Fantabulous weather!! Wonderful 55 birthday with my 4 children and husband!!

The weather was great and we had a great time relaxing and really enjoyed the lake and canoe.

Poor communication from recreation.gov, ended up getting a $360 fine for parking at the trailhead for an already booked reservation.

Hate to say how nice this cabin is, as it is already difficult to book!

This cabin was very well kept by previous guests and is very roomy. Would sleep 6 nicely (four would be best ). The rowboat had not been secured well and had washed all the way down the lake and down the Russian River to its confluence with the Kenai River and so a new one is being ordered. That was the one disappointment, exploring the lake with the boat would have made it an excellent rating. But beautiful location and area.