Tower Mountain Lookout ~ Umatilla National Forest
I remember the first time my husband took me to visit a forest fire lookout. These sentinels perched high on the mountains—the guardians of the forest, fascinated and intrigued me, maybe because they were ‘spies’ of the mountaintops.
On several occasions, I have joined my husband on his lookout duties, and sat in the tower excited when he reported a smoke, listened to the utter and complete silence of the forest, yet didn't feel alone, felt the gentle rocking of a tower swaying in the breeze, and admired the magnificent views from every window.
The great era of the fire lookouts guarding the Pacific Northwest forests has forever changed; time and technology has phased them out. Once upon a time, there were literally thousands of lookouts, today the numbers have dwindled down to a few hundred. Forgotten over time, abandoned, or burned to the ground because of they became a liability. In Oregon, approximately two hundred remain and less then half are staffed, and in Washington about a hundred exist, but fewer then 30 are still manned.
Below are the forest fire lookouts my husband staffed over the hot, dry summer months, along with a few we were able to visit.
If anyone is interested in the history of the forest fire lookouts in Oregon and Washington, I highly recommend Ray Kresek’s book Fire Lookouts of the Northwest. Copies of his book can be found for purchase here.
On several occasions, I have joined my husband on his lookout duties, and sat in the tower excited when he reported a smoke, listened to the utter and complete silence of the forest, yet didn't feel alone, felt the gentle rocking of a tower swaying in the breeze, and admired the magnificent views from every window.
The great era of the fire lookouts guarding the Pacific Northwest forests has forever changed; time and technology has phased them out. Once upon a time, there were literally thousands of lookouts, today the numbers have dwindled down to a few hundred. Forgotten over time, abandoned, or burned to the ground because of they became a liability. In Oregon, approximately two hundred remain and less then half are staffed, and in Washington about a hundred exist, but fewer then 30 are still manned.
Below are the forest fire lookouts my husband staffed over the hot, dry summer months, along with a few we were able to visit.
If anyone is interested in the history of the forest fire lookouts in Oregon and Washington, I highly recommend Ray Kresek’s book Fire Lookouts of the Northwest. Copies of his book can be found for purchase here.
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Tower Mountain Lookout
Location: Umatilla National Forest (Oregon) Elevation: 6850’ Manned: 1988, 1989, 2007 Relief Lookout: 1990, 1995 A 7x7 steel tower. The original living quarters burned down in the late 1940's and was replaced by the cabin from Lucky Strike Lookout. The site is on the National Historic Lookout Register, and is staffed every summer. |
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Bone Point Lookout
Location: Umatilla National Forest (Oregon) Elevation: 4527’ Manned: Emergency during the Boundary Fire Summer 1995 A 30' all-steel live-in tower. The tower is located on the southeast end of a mile-long ridge. It is available for emergency use. |
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Table Rock Lookout
Location: Umatilla National Forest (Washington) Elevation: 6250’ Manned: Summer 1996 First used with a D-6 cupola cabin in 1929 (which survived until at least 1958), the present 10' concrete base with L-4 cab was built in 1949, and modified in 1989. It is staffed every summer. |
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The Watchman
Location: Crater Lake National Park (Oregon) Elevation: 8056’ Visited: Summer 1997 Built in 1931, this 2-story stone and frame cab was recently restored, and is staffed by volunteers in the summer. |