History

Parrott Cabin (Earl K. Parrott / Hermit of Impassable Canyon)

River mile ~87 — GPX camp C-PARROTCABIN ~RM 87; Idaho Press: confluence of Nugget Creek and Middle Fork

Mapped at 45.2105, -114.6844.

The lower Parrott cabin at Nugget Creek (~mile 87) was built about a century ago by Earl King Parrott, the “Hermit of Impassable Canyon,” who lived alone for roughly 30 years panning flour gold, hunting, trapping, and gardening before dying in 1944. His upper cabin (reached by ladders/ropes ~1,000 feet up the canyon) burned in a late-1980s fire; the riverside cabin was restored in 2019 by the Salmon-Challis National Forest using traditional hand tools. Rivers.gov lists Parrott cabin among outstanding historic examples eligible for National Register consideration.