Remnants to the early days of fire detection can still be found in parts of the Mt Hood National Forest. Crow’s nest lookouts are typically a platform that sits on top of a tree with a ladder nailed to the trunk. Before there were lookout towers, fire attendants used to climb the trees to spot fires in the area.
Joe’s Point.
Date visited.
October 16, 2021; October 9, 2022
Elevation.
3,653′
History.
Joe’s point was an open platform built atop a large Ponderosa Pine in the 1930s. There was also a 12×12 cabin built for the lookout in the 1940s. The cabin is no longer on the summit, but you can still see pieces of the old platform and ladder. There’s a nice view of Mt Hood from the rock quarry where you park your car.
Directions.
Take NF-44 to NF-4440 to NF-140. Drive to the end of NF-140 and park your car. NF-140 is a bit bumpy in a passenger vehicle but doable. Once parked you will need to hike the old decommissioned road for about a mile. Follow the blue diamond markers on the trees, but be aware there are other roads in this area marked with blue diamonds that could lead you astray.
Perry Point.
Date visited.
October 17, 2021
Elevation.
4,920′
History.
Perry point was a crow’s nest platform built atop a Douglas Fir in the 1930s and abandoned in the 1940s. It was noted as a potential patrol point for Fivemile Butte L.O. There are only a few boards left on top of the tree and will most likely not be there for much longer. The view from the point is still worth the short hike up.
Directions.
Take NF-44 to NF-120 and park you car at the trailhead for Eightmile Loop Trail #496. From the trailhead it is a little under a mile to Perry Point. You will want to follow the signs for Bottle Prairie Trail #455. The first trail junction is only marked in one direction. You will want to take the trail to the right until you meet the second junction. From the second junction stay left until you see a sign for Perry Point. The trail to the right of the sign will take you directly to the crow’s nest. It is the tree at the very end of a rocky butte and can be hard to spot.
Rocky Butte.
Date visited.
November 20, 2021
Elevation.
4,796′
History.
Rocky Butte crows nest was built in 1929 atop a 60′ Ponderosa Pine. It has been abandoned for a long time, but remnants of the ladder and guy wires can still be found on the summit. You can also find a USDA Forest Service Benchmark on the summit dated back to 1924. This is my favorite of the crow’s nests we’ve been able to locate. The views from the summit are worth the short climb up alone.
Directions.
From Tygh Valley take Wamic-Market Road through Wamic. This road eventually turns into NF-48. Turn right onto NF-4810 towards Camp Cody. Stay on NF-4810 until you reach a four way junction with NF-4811 and NF-4813. Turn right onto NF-4811 and then left on to NF-4812 shortly after. Continue on this road until you reach the trailhead sign. The road washes out about a 1/2 mile from the trailhead but a higher clearance vehicle will have no issues. There is limited pull out room for parking. It’s only a short 1/2 mile hike up the trail once you find the trailhead.
Bus Point.
Date visited.
November 21, 2021
Elevation.
3,333′
History.
Bus point was built as a crow’s nest in 1933 but has since been abandoned. It sat atop a 95′ Ponderosa Pine and was accessed via a 32′ ladder. The ladder leaned against the tree and was wired in place. From the ladder, the lookout attendant then had to navigate the branches to reach the top. The ladder and tree were still standing when we visited but the tree is no longer living and there are visible signs of rot. I would recommend seeing this one sooner than later.
Directions.
Same directions as Rocky Butte but instead of turning right on to NF-4811 at the four way junction, you will turn left. You will take NF-4811 until you reach an un-signed three way junction. NF-4811 in this directions has some large potholes but I was able to maneuver them with caution in my Civic. You will pass NF-4814 on the right and paved NF-4820 on the left before reaching the major junction where you will park. It’s good to have a detailed map of this area since there are a lot of skid roads you will pass as well and no definitive marker for this one. From the junction you will cross country hike off the road to the right following a game path. My tracker said we only went 0.16 miles before reaching the tree. We were able to find it right away with no issues.
Eightmile Point.
Date visited.
October 8, 2022
Elevation.
5,280′
History.
There isn’t much history on this crow’s nest. It was built in the 1930’s atop a Fir and I presume abandoned in the 1940s with the rest of them. Unfortunately, this one is no longer standing and we were only able to find remnants of it. It was hard to pin point which tree was the previous lookout tree on the ground. But, we found the general area with some remaining wire, boards, an insulator, and the help of some other lookout enthusiasts that were also trying to find it that day.
Directions.
Head into the Mt. Hood NF from Dufur taking a right on Dufur Valley Road that eventually turns into NF-44 once you reach the forest. Turn left on NF-4420 until you reach a junction with a major gravel road leading right. From here, if you continue straight it turns into NF-2730. But, you will want to stay on NF-4420 and turn right onto the gravel. You will stay on this road until you reach the trailhead for Fifteenmile Trail #456 off to the left (parking on the right). It’s an obvious trail just past the junction with spur road NF-160. Park your car and walk the remaining distance up the trail to reach Eightmile Point. It is less than a half of a mile up the trail. The trail connects to other roads and can be reached from other directions, but we found this to be the most direct.
The Roaming Civic 