Oregon Lookouts

Dog Mountain L.O. (Fremont NF)

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Fremont-Winema National Forest

Status.

Unknown; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

7 hours

Date visited.

June 27, 2022

Elevation.

6,936′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 475; OR 71

Trip Report.

Day 3/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

Our last stop for the day was Dog Mountain L.O. on the Fremont-Winema NF. This is another one we expected to be staffed during our visit. From Bly, you can either cut across the forest via connecting Forest Service roads or take the highway. It seemed that most who visited this lookout previously came in from Lakeview. Some of the trip reports even mentioned it was a good road for low clearance vehicles all the way to the summit. I was skeptical to say the least. I felt the pavement would be the quickest way and we headed out of Bly on HWY-140. There are a few different routes you can take from here. We ended up turning onto Tunnel Hill Road that eventually turned into Westside Road. We stayed on this road until we reached Dog Lake Lane. Take a right. As the name of the road indicates it will take you all the way to Dog Lake. There is a campground and day use area here. You should be able to see the fortress of a lookout from the road as you drive in. Once past the reservoir the road turns to gravel. We turned on the first major gravel road off to the right. This is supposedly NF-3752 but I didn’t see a sign. We briefly stayed on this road and then turned right on to NF-406. I didn’t see a sign for this road either but it appeared to head in the right direction. Some indicators that you’re on the right road; there will be a cattle guard and it will be at a junction with NF-085 off to the left (this road is signed). From this junction, it is about 5-1/2 miles to the summit. The NF-406 road will take you all the way. You will want to bear right when you reach the junction with NF-052 to stay on the correct path. The road is exposed and narrow as it winds up and around. We hoped not to meet anyone on it. There is no gate for this lookout and you can, in fact, drive all the way to the summit. Even in a low clearance vehicle.

There was no other vehicle here and the lookout seemed to still be locked up for the season. We found this odd since most sources noted it as staffed. We looked around through the windows and it was still stocked like a lookout in use. There was a fire finder, desk, and chairs along with some other items that indicated someone had been up there more recently. But, on the other hand, there was a visible Lookout Fire Report sheet that was last used in June 2020, the toilet seat was broken in the privy, and a wood rat had made its home in between one of the shutters. There was also a fire alarm beeping in the living quarters below that needed the batteries changed. Our guess was that it might have been recently moved to emergency status or had a staffing issue. We decided to camp on the summit for the night since no one was there. Someone else drove up a little after we set up our camp. We panicked and thought it might be the lookout attendant, but they were only there with their dog for a brief time and didn’t say a word to us. The views from here were commanding. We could see all the way to Lassen Peak in California. It was one of my favorite camps of the trip.

History.

Dog Mountain started with a simple Alidade and has been used as a lookout site since 1918. Possibly earlier. A standard D-6 cupola cabin wasn’t added until 1926. An accompanying 16×18 wood framed garage was added in 1934 by the local CCC. In 1947, a new 14×14 Aladdin style house was constructed as a lookout with no catwalk. It was maintained into the 1980s. The Forest Service didn’t consider replacing it until an inspection report in 1995. The site was also noted as being used for a long-term weather station. In 1997, the lookout that stands today was built by Hargrove Construction as a replacement. They built a unique 2-story house with living quarters on the first floor and the lookout office with catwalk on the second. It reminds me of a log cabin.

Bly Ranger Station L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Community Park in Bly, Oregon

Status.

Maintained for educational purposes

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

5-1/2 hours

Date visited.

June 27, 2022

Elevation.

4,365′ (original)

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 482; OR 75

Trip Report.

Day 3/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

After a quick visit to Chase Mountain (post), we were back on HWY-66 heading east once again. We skirted around Klamath Falls and connected to HWY-140 towards the community of Bly. The fire lookout is located in a small community park labeled The Perch. It’s a bright red lookout, so you won’t be able to miss it from the highway. It’s fittingly located next to the Bly Rural Fire Protection District building. We made a quick stop here to check it out. There was no one else at the park during our visit. I’m not sure if that was due to the heat or the swarm of mosquitoes that seemed to be living here. The lookout cab was filled with all sorts of different fire related paraphernalia. Other than the lookout, there were some picnic tables, a play ground, public restrooms, two stacked cars (art display?), and an informative Oregon History kiosk about the Balloon Bombs from World War II.

We continued on to the Ranger Station afterwards to see if they were finally open and if they had some Ranger District maps that we wanted. For the last two years, it felt like they would never open again or at least that’s what my partner thought. We were surprised to find them open, but they didn’t have the maps we needed. A fire crew had apparently cleared them out. We headed briefly on HWY-140 again to the Sprague River National Forest Picnic Area. We stopped here to have lunch and refill our water jugs. Little did we know all of Klamath County was in a drought and had turned off all public water access in parks and campgrounds. Even with an exponentially wet spring some places were still in drought. A crucial misstep in our route planning as the majority of our trip was within Klamath County. We decided not to completely panic yet since we still had seven gallons. But, we knew at some point we’d have to figured something else out. On to Dog Mountain (post) for now.

History.

The Bly Ranger Station was first used as a fire lookout in 1934 with a platform on top of the warehouse roof. In 1958, a 20′ timber tower with 7×7 flat roof cab was constructed on the compound. It was only ever used during emergencies. In 2007, the lookout tower was decommissioned and dismantled. The superstructure was destroyed, but the cab was moved to the community park for display. The community park is less than a mile from the Ranger Station.

Table Mountain L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Southwest Oregon FPA; Oregon Department of Forestry

Status.

Abandoned; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

6 hours

Date visited.

June 26, 2022

Elevation.

6,113′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 1643; OR 161

Trip Report.

Day 2/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

Table Mountain was a nice way to end a long day. After dinner, we headed out of camp once more to catch the sunset. We took the Hyatt Prairie Road and turned on the road towards the Table Mountain Winter Play Area. It was only 2 miles to the lookout from this junction. The road condition alternated between pavement with potholes and good gravel. We stayed on the main road until we reached a 4-way junction. None of the roads are marked but you will want to take a right. You will meet a fork in the road shortly after this junction, stay right again. We decided to park here and walk the remaining distance since there is a gate. There is also a pull out just before the gate that offers parking for a couple cars.

The evening temperatures had dropped significantly from the 90+ degree day and made the short walk up very pleasant. This summit does have quite a few communication towers on it, but was surprisingly pretty. The tower is blocked off to visitors by a barbed wire gate. We were still able to spot Robinson Butte (post), Parker Mountain (post), Chase Mountain (post), and Soda Mountain (post) from the base. Robinson Butte (post) looked like David with Goliath Mt McLoughlin looming over it. We stayed on the summit for as long as possible watching the colors change from warm yellows to different shades of pinks and purples. We wanted to stay longer, but driving back in the dark didn’t sound appealing to either of us. We were also moving camps for the first time this trip and needed to prep for a longer drive day.

History.

A 30′ pole tower with live-in cab was built on Table Mountain in 1931 by what was then known as the Crater National Forest. The Moon Prairie CCC camp added a garage and wood shed in 1933. It was replaced in 1958 with a 30′ treated timber tower and ODF-style cab. I believe it was decommissioned in the mid-1960s given that the garage was torn down and burned in 1963. The last noted use was in 1975 when it was staffed while Parker (post) and Chase Mountain (post)were being remodeled.

Soda Mountain L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument; Oregon Department of Forestry

Status.

Fire Detection Camera; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

5-1/2 hours

Date visited.

June 26, 2022

Elevation.

6,091′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 340; OR 39

Trip Report.

Day 2/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

Another early morning was on the schedule. Though, we were able to sleep in an extra hour due to the central location of our camp. The plan for the day was to hike to Soda Mountain via the PCT, potentially visit Parker Mountain (post) if we finished early, and check off Table Mountain (post) near sunset. We packed a lunch and headed out of the Hyatt Lake Recreation Area towards HWY-66. From HWY-66, we took a road conveniently marked as Soda Mountain Road. This lead us all the way to the Hobart Bluff Trailhead to start our hike. The road is decent gravel but has a few potholes to avoid. It was nothing unmanageable to us low clearance folk. There were a few cars parked at the trailhead already. We figured this would be the busiest lookout we’d visit this trip given its proximity to the PCT and being within a National Monument.

The trail starts out on the PCT heading south towards the California border over an exposed slope. It was covered in all sorts of wildflowers while we were there. Eventually, it enters a shaded forest that occasionally opens up to views out towards Pilot Rock and Mt Ashland. You will stay on the PCT for about a mile until you reach a trail junction. There is no sign stating this is the trail to Soda Mountain but there is a trail marker to help identify the junction. It takes a sharp left up the slope and connects with the road that will take you to the summit. Be aware of where you come out on the road, the trail becomes faint here. There is a “Soda Mountain-Pilot Rock Jeep Road” sign that can be used as a marker to find where you need to turn on the way back. You also have the option to walk the road back to the trailhead. We passed a few day and section hikers along the PCT, but once we turned up the connector trail we surprisingly had it to ourselves. There was a section hiker sitting at the junction that asked where we were headed. We mentioned the lookout and he asked how far it was from there. I didn’t know the exact distance but guesstimated about a mile or mile and a half. Too far for him he grunted. His pack looked pretty loaded and I agreed. Round trip from the trailhead it is roughly 4 miles with a little over 800′ in elevation gain. It was a pleasant hike that was mostly in the shade.

Once on the summit, you are exposed to the excessive amount of communication towers. The short little fire lookout can be found tucked in between them. Despite minor obstructions, you still get pretty great views of Mt Shasta, Mt McLoughlin, Mt Ashland, Soda Mountain Wilderness, and the surrounding valleys. We enjoyed our lunch in the shade of the catwalk with no other visitors. Once we decided to head down we figured we’d run into at least one person. It’s the weekend for Pete’s Sake! But, we only ever saw people hiking on the PCT portion. The day was still young when we reached the car and we decided we had time to head farther east to Parker Mountain (post).

History.

Established in 1933, Soda Mountain was built by the CCC as a 6′ enclosed tower with L-4 cab. It was located on land owned by the Bureau of Land Management just four miles north of the California border, but it seems it was managed by the ODF. In 1962, the lookout was rebuilt raising the tower to 8′ and restructuring the cab as a 14’x14′ ODF flat top. A communication site was added to the summit in 1968 which was able to provide electricity to the lookout as well. Cellular towers were added in 1992 that partially blocked the view. A year later they raised the tower to 10′ and added a storage shed underneath. The area wasn’t considered a National Monument until June 2000. It was designated by President Clinton to protect the biodiversity of where the Cascade Range and Siskiyou Mountains meet. In 2015, the metal roof sustained damage from the harsh winter and had to be temporarily tarped to cover the exposed area. It was actively staffed every season up until 2017. I assume that’s when they installed a camera similar to most other ODF fire lookouts we’ve visited.

More Information.

Oregon Hikers

AllTrails

Parker Mountain L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Klamath County; Oregon Department of Forestry

Status.

Active; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

6 hours

Date visited.

June 26, 2022

Elevation.

5,210′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 497; OR 90

Trip Report.

Day 2/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

My partner, for some reason, only brought one 32oz water bottle with him for the day and had easily drank it all on our hike to Soda Mountain (post). We were headed east on HWY-66 towards the community of Pinehurst, but we needed to find water if we wanted to continue on to Parker Mountain. We stopped near the Green Springs Inn & Cabins to see if there was anywhere to fill up. It had a small information center dedicated to the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument, but no one was inside. The BBQ restaurant attached to the Inn was closed too, but they had an accessible water fill station outside. Thank you Green Springs Inn! We came to the conclusion on our drive to Parker Mountain that HWY-66 is one of the sleepiest highways we’ve ever driven. You might pass one car every 10 minutes. There will be a sign from the highway for the needed turn to Parker Mountain L.O. It is otherwise an unmarked junction. Once off the highway, we immediately passed through an open gate to a four way junction. I believe the gate is closed seasonally during the winter. This is unsigned but you will want to continue straight. We followed this road to another junction that was surprisingly signed for Parker Mountain. It looked like a fairly new sign too. If for some reason the sign isn’t there, you will want to take the road to the right. The road starts to deteriorate after this junction with larger rocks to avoid. We decided to park near the sign and walk the remaining mile and a half to the lookout.

We started hiking during the hottest part of the day. I had to take a much needed break in every patch of shade I found. It felt like it took us forever to get anywhere. There are some spurs leading off of this road, but I felt it was fairly obvious which road you needed to stay on. Parker Mountain was one of the few lookouts during this trip that was supposedly staffed. We eventually came to the gate and found it was open. Just past the gate you will get your first glimpse of the lookout. It appeared to be open for the season. As we got closer, we approached with caution. We never want to disturb the fire attendant or make them feel like we are invading their space. Turns out it was all for naught since no one was there. Though, there were signs of someone recently being there and the cab had been opened up. We speculated that they were either on their day off or hadn’t started their season yet. Either way it gave us free range to climb the tower and explore the summit fully. The catwalk was still locked, of course, but we were able to get a pretty good view from the highest landing. It was nice to be on a summit without a bunch of communication equipment for a change. I really enjoyed the sizing of the staircase on this lookout too. The steps weren’t as narrow or steep as other towers. There was also a water barrel and trough located under one of the trees for the wildlife. It was fun to watch all the different little birdies come down to take a drink. After Parker Mountain, we decided to head back to camp for a quick dinner in between lookouts.

History.

The first fire lookout was constructed on Parker Mountain in 1934 by the CCC. It was a 50′ round timber tower with a steeply pitched roof. John Colvard of the Klamath Forest Protective Association primarily staffed this lookout for almost 20 years until he passed away in 1952. He previously worked on Calimus Butte (post) for 3 years when it was used as the main fire lookout for the Klamath Indian Reservation. In 1956, the previous tower was replaced by a 30′ steel tower with 14×14 wooden cab. In 1965, Parker Mountain was considered one of four lookouts located on Weyerhaeuser Company land. They allowed a permit for the Klamath FPA to continue maintaining and staffing the existing lookout. Eventually, it was managed and operated by the Oregon Department of Forestry. I’m not sure when exactly the land and fire lookout changed hands though. There was an old 16×24 living quarters cabin that was purposefully burned in 1968 due to being unusable. The steel tower was damaged by an arsonist in 1995 and needed to be replaced. In 1997, the existing lookout was constructed by the Steve Burrows Construction Company. It is an ODF design with 40′ steel tower and 15×15 wood cab. It is still actively staffed every season.

Sexton Mountain L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Josephine County; Oregon Department of Forestry

Status.

Fire Detection Camera; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

4-1/2 hours

Date visited.

June 25, 2022

Elevation.

3,834′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 741; OR 113

Trip Report.

Day 1/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

Our alarm went off begrudgingly at 6:30AM, a time at which we would wake many more times this trip. We had a jam packed road trip planned to visit 17 fire lookouts, potentially 18 if things went our way, in southern Oregon over the next 10 days. My partner and I knew we needed to get up if we wanted this to work, but the lack of sleep had us calling for the snooze button. I made the mistake of thinking I could squeeze in an afternoon hike and dinner with my friend before finishing off my needed prep the night before. Of course, things took longer than expected and I wasn’t in bed until well after midnight. My partner works a swing shift, so he’s typically not home until around that time as well. Needless to say, we are not early risers by any means (although I was for a brief time during my mid-twenties). Eventually we were able to collect ourselves enough to climb out of bed and start packing the car. Our plan for the day was to bomb down I-5 towards the most southern portions of Oregon. We would hit Sexton Mountain then cross over HWY-140 to Robinson Butte (post), and if time permitted we would head up to Table Mountain (post) on our way to camp.

Sexton Mountain is located just off I-5 outside of the community of Sunny Valley. We were following directions from a Geocache (site) that mentioned a route suitable for most vehicles. From I-5, we took exit 71 and turned left onto Sunny Valley Loop Road. You will want to take a right on to Placer Road that is immediately after the single lane covered bridge over Grave Creek. You will take another right onto Beecher Road that will eventually turn into BLM Road 34-6-12 that takes you to the junction of BLM Road 34-6-23 with a locked gate. It is around 5 miles from Placer Road to the gate. The road was passable but not necessarily great for low clearance vehicles. On the steeper sections there was wash out from water run off to straddle and the flatter sections had pot holes to avoid. The junction before the gate has ample parking for a few cars, though I doubt you will see anyone else. From the gate, you will need to road walk a little under a mile to reach the summit.

Summer decided to finally show itself with 90+ degree weather forecasted for the upcoming week. Given our recent bout with a wet spring, we had little to no time to acclimate to this warmer weather. I could feel the moisture leave my body the second I stepped out of the car and started hiking up the road. I was drier than the Alvord Desert despite constantly consuming as much water as possible. The hike to the summit isn’t long but it felt fairly steep. I struggled my way to the top with every hot dusty step. On the hike up, we were surprised to see two jeeps bumping down from the summit. At first I thought they must be some sort of maintenance crew since they were behind the gate, but then they took off on a bumpy road that seemingly headed straight down the side of the mountain. The summit is littered with communication towers and the lookout tower itself is locked behind a barbed wire fence. There wasn’t much of a view from the base either. It was definitely one of the least pretty summits we’ve been to so far. The original historic D-6 cupola cabin from the 1920s was cool though. We spent very little time on the summit due to the oppressive heat and pressed on to Robinson Butte (post).

History.

Sexton Mountain was first established for fire detection in 1914 with a tent camp. A D-6 cupola cabin was constructed in 1920 and was used as the main lookout until 1932. They moved the existing D-6 cupola cabin over, lowered the cupola, and converted it into living quarters while a house with taller cupola was built for their working quarters. In 1962, the house with taller cupola was moved and turned over to the US Weather Bureau. A 30′ timber tower with Amort ODF cab was built to replace the house. It was maintained and used up until April 2006 when some vandals burned it to the ground along with some repeater antennas. The damages were estimated around $500,000 according to the Oregon State Police. A replacement all-steel 40′ live-in tower with flat roofed cab was built in 2007 and staffed well into the 2010’s. It is now only used in emergencies and the original D-6 Cupola from the 1920s can still be found on the summit.

Robinson Butte L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest

Status.

Abandoned; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

6 hours

Date visited.

June 25, 2022

Elevation.

5,864′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 740; OR 112

Trip Report.

Day 1/10: Lookout Road Trip 2022

After dusting our way back down the BLM road from Sexton Mountain (post), we popped on I-5 to head farther south. From Medford, we headed east via HWY-62 to connect with HWY-140. We winded along HWY-140 until we entered the forest and reached NF-37 off to the right. You will head towards the Big Elk Guard Station, which is a rental unit through the Forest Service. We turned right on to NF-3730 just across from the Guard Station. The spur that leads to Robinson Butte is NF-050 and is only a short distance down NF-3730. Some of the roads weren’t marked but there is a notable corral next to the NF-050 junction. We headed up the spur and were met by a fairly large water bar that made us turn around. We concluded it made more sense to park and walk the road instead. By this time, the heat and lack of sleep had caught up with me. I was feeling pretty green and didn’t know if I could make it. I told my partner to continue on without me while I waited at the car. I few minutes later he came running back down the road and told me the water bar looked worse than what it was. He was determined to get me as close to Robinson Butte as possible before I gave up completely.

We started the car back up NF-050 and proceeded to bump over 11 different water bars before we reached the gate. It was otherwise a very good road. The bumps only nauseated me more and, to put it lightly, I lost my lunch near where we parked by the gate. I felt much better afterwards. Normally, I wouldn’t push myself but we were less than a mile from the lookout. I knew we wouldn’t be in the area again anytime soon and started to slowly crawl up the road. The gate was open but there were some larger rocks that looked like they could take out our oil pan. There was a fairly new communication building that we speculated must have been added earlier this year. The base of the lookout offers no views, but I was just happy to be able to make it. My partner decided to climb the tower despite the missing steps and ominous note. As always climb at your own risk. I wasn’t able to reach the summit until a little after 6PM. Even if I had been feeling one hundred percent, we were running out of time to make it to Table Mountain (post). We decided to push it off until tomorrow since we would still be in the area.

Normally, we prefer to disperse camp for free but the area is surrounded by a patchwork of private land and parts of the Cascade-Siskiyou National Monument. With our packed schedule, we wouldn’t have had time to search for camp either. We made a last minute decision before we left to camp at the Hyatt Reservoir Campground for 2-nights. We were lucky that they still had availability online given the impending holiday weekend. I believe this was due to the lack of water in the Reservoir, it was lower than normal and the boat ramps were even closed. I was thankful for this decision because that meant we had showers and potable water for the next two nights. Something we would be severely lacking the next three nights. I felt like a whole new person after showering, eating something, and getting a good night of sleep. But, the next day was expected to be just as full as today. No rest for the wicked.

Pictures of Robinson Butte cab courtesy of my partner

History.

Robinson Butte was first noted as a fire detection camp in 1917. According to Ron Kemnow’s website, it is possible it was even used as early as 1913 with plans to potentially add a crow’s nest in 1916. The first structures were built in 1933 by the Moon Prairie CCC. The lookout was a 20′ pole tower with L-4 cab and neighboring garage. It was replaced in 1974 when the 53′ treated tower with R-6 cab was moved from Blue Rock L.O. by truck. As of 2016, it failed inspection and was listed as condemned.

Wagontire Mountain L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Bureau of Land Management – Burns District

Status.

Emergency; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

6 hours

Date visited.

June 18, 2022

Elevation.

6,510′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 954;OR 126

Trip Report.

We tried to wake up early Saturday morning to give us as much time as possible to visit Wagontire Mountain, fondly referred to as Wagon-TEER by my partner. It was an unfortunately damp morning and looked like it would be a rainy day ahead. From Hines to the community of Wagontire is about 50 miles of highway driving that doesn’t include our drive out of the forest, the 5 miles of gravel to the gate, or the 6 miles of hiking we’d need to do round trip. We headed out of camp back towards Hines and out on HWY-20 towards Riley. From Riley, we turned on to HWY-395 to the community of Wagontire. We weren’t able to see the lookout from the highway since it was deep within a rain cloud. The road you will take to get to the lookout is unmarked. It will be the first right turn after mile post 29D outside of the community of Wagontire. None of the roads leading to the lookout in this area are marked at all and could be confusing without the proper directions. I had done some prior research and found detailed directions from an Ascent Trip Report by Paul McClellan on PeakBagger. It’s helpful to zero your odometer and follow his below directions.

  • 0.0 cross a cattle guard
  • 0.4 continue straight, right at the junction
  • 1.5 continue straight, right at the junction
  • 3.2 cross a dry creek bed. I’d barely consider this a creek bed and given that it was dry even during a wet spring makes me think it only flows when the snow melts.
  • 4.0 cross a cattle guard
  • 5.2 cross a cattle guard
  • 5.6 bear right at the junction, you should see the gate shortly after
  • 5.8 arrive at gate and park

It seems in previous years the gate leading to the lookout has been locked, but it was open on our trip. The road just past the gate is overgrown and full of large rocks that I wouldn’t want to attempt even on a good day. We parked to start our 3-mile hike to the summit. The roads getting to the gate alternate between dirt and rock. The dirt sections were a bit slick after all the rain and the rocky sections would pose a threat to a lower clearance. I was once again thankful for the extra clearance provided by the HR-V and speculated if my Civic could handle this road too. I think if one was to attempt this in a lower clearance vehicle they would need to do this on a dry day with a lot of confidence.

The hike up follows the road but was pleasant and it didn’t feel like much of a road walk at all. You will start up a hill that has signs of a more recent fire, possibly the Cinder Butte Fire in 2017. The rolling hills were covered in meadows with all sorts of different wildflowers. The weather even started to break for us and opened up to some views to the valleys below. Once on top of the hill you will follow a flat ridge for a while before heading up to the final high point. Similar to most lookouts, you will not be able to see Wagontire Mountain L.O. until you are almost there. This lookout is relatively new in comparison to most and was in great condition besides needing a fresh coat of paint. We enjoyed some snacks on the summit while the weather alternated between clear and cloudy. We would’ve stayed longer but we knew we still had a 3-mile hike back to the car and longer drive back to camp. It didn’t really start raining on us until we started to hike down. It was such a pretty road walk that I didn’t really mind the rain. It was crisp and refreshing, a literal breath of fresh air. I thought about how miserable those biking the Skull 120/60/30 must have been that day.

History.

The existing lookout structure on the summit is a 2-story BLM style cab that was built in 1967. This is the first and only lookout that was built here. The name Wagontire comes from an immigrant wagon that was burned by indigenous people in the mid-1800s. Only one wheel was left behind and it remained on the slop until 1925.

Bald Butte L.O. (Ochoco NF)

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Ochoco National Forest; Managed by Malheur National Forest

Status.

Abandoned; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

6 hours

Date visited.

June 17th, 2022

Elevation.

5,920′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 425; OR 50

Trip Report.

My partner, his mom, and I headed out on a 3-day camping trip to kick off her recent retirement. We left it up to her on what kind of trip she wanted to take, whether it be backpacking or car camping. She decided she was interested in visiting some fire lookouts with us and we set out to plan accordingly. Bald Butte, Dry Mountain (post), and Wagontire Mountain (post)were all lookouts we had planned for our road trip this summer. They were a bit farther out than the rest of our route and we figured it would make a decent 3-day trip instead. This way we could re-route our road trip to other fire lookouts farther south as well. We headed out early Friday morning towards Hines, Oregon. We decided to drive her Honda HR-V since it can fit three people plus camping gear more comfortably than my Civic. It also has the added benefit of additional clearance for the rougher Forest Service roads. From Hines, we headed into the forest via the Hines Logging Road that is right next to the Sinclair truck stop. It will eventually turn into NF-47 once you reach the boundary. Our plan was to visit Bald Butte and Dry Mountain (post) before setting up camp for two nights. You will want to take a left onto NF-41 after entering the forest to get to both of these. The turn is signed but it was hard to see from the approach out of Hines. We actually drove past it and had to turn around.

On our drive in we noticed there were interesting arrows and signage noting there would be bikes on the road tomorrow, June 18th. My partner and I joked that we always seem to run into these extreme races while out in the woods. It turns out we were right in assuming it was another one. We looked it up when we had service the next day and found the Skull 120/60/30, also considered America’s Gnarliest Gravel Race (site). It’s a gravel bike race hosted by Harney County to help showcase Eastern Oregon and help bring money into the county. There are three different lengths to the race you can sign up for; 38 miles, 65 miles, or the gnarliest 128 miles. We have also managed to stumbled upon the Baker City Cycling Classic during their Stage 4 Anthony Lakes Road Race in June of 2021 (site). We were driving home from a 9-day backpacking trip through the North Fork of the John Day Wilderness when we had to drive around the peloton. My partner was also passed by some racers from the America’s Toughest Race while camping in the Deschutes NF with his dad in May of 2021 (site). They even had a chance to talk to one of the racers and asked them where they were coming from to which they responded “a long ways away”. The America’s Toughest Race is a combination of foot travel, water travel, and cycle travel through rugged off trail routes. Everyone from your team must finish together otherwise you are disqualified. Anyway, it seems most of these races attract extreme masochists. It’s not what I would consider a fun time outside, but to each their own.

We were glad that we decided to do Bald Butte and Dry Mountain (post) on Friday instead of Saturday. It seemed that a lot of the bike route for the Skull 120/60/30 was along the roads we needed to take to get there. You will be able to see Bald Butte L.O. as you drive along NF-41. It is a surprisingly nice paved Forest Service road that I expected to be gravel. From NF-41, Bald Butte is less than a mile up NF-4117 off to the left. There is a sign but it is covered by trees and I wasn’t able to spot it until we were driving out. Luckily, even without the sign it is pretty obvious which road will take you to the summit. There are some deep washouts and water bars along NF-4117 that would make the drive difficult to impossible for lower clearance vehicles. I wasn’t comfortable driving the HR-V up the road, so we parked near the NF-050 spur and walked the remainder. It was a pleasant walk to the summit and the road had a lot of wildflowers along it. The lookout on Bald Butte, unfortunately, has seen better days. The tower seems to be standing strong but the cab has lost a supporting wall and a few support beams. I wouldn’t be surprised if the cab collapses under heavy snow within the next few years. I believe the glass was removed and salvaged by Howard Verschoor though. An assessment done by the Friends of the Blue Mountains Lookouts in 2021 found it to be too unstable for any additional salvage work. They even mentioned that it would be torn down later that year. We were happy to find that they were wrong and the lookout was still standing. There is a wire fence surrounding the base but someone had cut a hole in it and the trap door was open to the catwalk. Climb at your own risk. We savored the views and said our good-byes to the lookout before hiking down to the car and heading on to Dry Mountain (post).

History.

Established in 1931, Bald Butte originally had a 45′ pole tower with 8’x8′ cab. It was replaced in 1959 with the existing R-6 cab and 41′ treated timber tower. It was moved to emergency use in 1964 and on the emergency list up until the 1990s. As of 2017, it has been listed for decommission by the Forest Service.

Dry Mountain L.O.

Oregon Lookouts

Location.

Ochoco National Forest; Managed by Malheur National Forest

Status.

Emergency; Currently standing

Estimated drive time from Portland, OR.

6-1/2 hours

Date visited.

June 17, 2022

Elevation.

6,281′

National Historic Lookout Register.

US 426; OR 51

Trip Report.

After visiting Bald Butte L.O. (post), we headed farther west along NF-41 until we reached NF-4120 off to the left. This road will take you all the way to the summit of Dry Mountain. There are a couple of junctions along this road that could be mistaken for the route if you’re not careful but it is all signed and should be easy to follow if you’re paying attention. From the Junction of NF-41 and NF-4120 it is 12 miles of gravel to reach the fire lookout. The first 8 miles of gravel are well maintained and passable to any vehicle. It’s a really pretty drive through a canyon and ponderosa forest. The last 4 miles are a bit rough and rocky that could potentially be hazardous to low clearance vehicles. I was thankful for the additional clearance on the HR-V during this section and it had no issues driving all the way. My partner and I speculated whether we would be able to drive this section in my Civic. I don’t think I would’ve enjoyed it but I think we could have made it with a lot of caution, getting out to move rocks, riding high lines, and slow driving. It’s definitely a road for the heartier 2WD adventurers.

On the summit, there is a cabin and Aermotor tower with a couple of communication buildings. The cabin is completely wood rat infested and I was only able to comfortably look inside from the frame of the un-locked door. My partner climbed all the way to the top of the Aermotor where he found a 2006 Burns Interagency Fire Zone Mobilization Guide and an old log book that the lookout attendants used. His mom and I only felt the need to climb part way up the tower to a few of the landings. You are basically on the edge of the forest and there is a lovely view into the valleys below. For some reason, there were a bunch of mosquitos in this area. It would be the only time we ran into them this trip but we all walked away with a few bites. They were so distracting that we even forgot to take our group picture with the lookout. My partner and I realized this after bumping down the road a ways but it was a bit too far to justify turning around. We were both pretty bummed even though it’s mostly for posterity.

After leaving Dry Mountain, we were able to find a nice camp with a view of Bald Butte (post) and even enjoyed a camp fire. It wasn’t until we were getting ready to go to bed that it started raining on us. Yes, that’s right, more rain. Thunderstorms rolled in later that night and struck within less than a mile of our camp twice. My intrusive thoughts kept me up for most of the night after that. I ran through what I knew about thunderstorms and why or why not I would be its next target. Is being in a tent safe with metal poles? Does my air mattress act as a buffer since I’m not touching the ground? Is it more likely to hit the lightning rod on Bald Butte, the car, or the tree next to us? Is it better to be curled up or lay flat? Does moving around help or hinder? Does it matter if we’re on the highest point or not? Of course, the storm passed quickly and we were all fine, but it made me think about safety tips. There seems to be more thunderstorms on our recent trips and I’m sure there will continue to be more in the future as weather reaches more extremes and climates change.

Lightning Safety Outdoors

  1. The flash-to-bang method is the quickest way to calculate how close you are to a storm. It is calculated by how many seconds pass between the flash of lightning to the sound of thunder. You will then need to divide by 5 to estimate the distance it is in miles. I used to only count the seconds as the distance in miles which means some thunderstorms have been closer than I initially thought. If the time between lightning and thunder is less than 30 seconds, it is close enough to be dangerous.
  2. Minimize contact with the ground. Lightning is typically looking for the easiest path of least resistance to the ground. The best position to be in is crouched in a ball-like position with your head tucked and hands over your ears, avoid laying flat.
  3. Avoid elevated areas. If you’re on a peak or high point, attempt to reach lower ground and avoid sheltering under isolated trees. Lightning will most likely strike the tallest object.
  4. Avoid water and metal since both can carry an electrical current. If you’re in the water or on a boat, head to shore immediately.
  5. Find shelter. If going indoors is not an option, your hard-top vehicle with the windows rolled up or lower trees in a forest will work. Do not use a cliff or rocky overhang as shelter.
  6. Avoid open spaces. Avoid open vehicles and open structures since these will not sufficiently protect you from lightning.
  7. If you are in a group, separate. This will help reduce the number of injuries if lightning strikes the ground.

History.

In 1929, a platform was constructed near the top of a yellow pine tree making a 110′ crows nest. This was the highest platform occupied by a lookout on the Ochoco NF. A ground cabin was added in 1930 for the lookout’s living quarters. The existing 70′ Aermotor tower with 7’x7′ cab was built in 1932. It was moved to emergency use in the 1970s, but has been staffed more recently in the 2000s during extreme weather by the BLM. As of 2017, it has been listed for decommission by the Forest Service.