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SAND MOUNTAIN LOOKOUT
Location:
3.25 miles SSW of Hoodoo Ski, Oregon
Restored by SMS:
1990-2014
Ranger District:
McKenzie
Honors:
Oregon Heritage Excellence Award (State Historic Preservation Office 2014)
Our Team
Gary McAtee, Doug Newman, and Bill Joy at original Sand Mountain Lookout dedication ceremony in 1990.
Gary McAtee, Doug Newman, and Bill Joy
The late Roger McAlister, a mainstay of the SMS in its early years, assembles the replica bed frame constructed by Richard Miller. SMS photo (1990).
Roger McAlister
Bruce Hake, one of the best carpenters in the SMS, contributes hundreds of hours of expert labor each year. SMS photo.
Bruce Hake
Sand Mountain Lookout
Sand Mountain is a prominent landmark along the Historic Santiam Wagon Road in Santiam Pass, and has been used as a primary fire lookout since the early days of the Forest Service, beginning in the 1920s when an Osbourne firefinder sat on a wooden pole atop the summit.
In 1933, a “grange hall” style L-4 lookout cabin was constructed atop Sand Mountain, and was staffed continuously for many summers. The lookout survived the 7,200-acre Big Lake Airstrip Fire of 1967 only to burn down ironically the next season on a foggy evening while the staffer was running errands in nearby Sisters, Oregon.
The Forest Service placed a trailer with a pop-up cupola atop Sand Mountain for the 1969 fire season, but with a growing network of roads and increasing reliance upon aerial detection, lookouts were being largely abandoned in the late 1960s. For a time, Sand Mountain was only used as a lookout site by mobile patrols.
In the aftermath of the Big Lake Airstrip Fire, increasing off-road vehicle use was causing damage to the heritage and fragile geologic resources of the Sand Mountain Volcanic Alignment. Recognizing the need to take action, a group of concerned citizens formed the Sand Mountain Society and entered into a model partnership with the USDA Forest Service to encourage compatible use and protect resources in the area. The SMS and USFS collaborated to relocate an abandoned “grange hall L-4” fire lookout (of vintage identical to the original Sand Mountain Lookout) from Whisky Peak on the Rogue River National Forest in Southern Oregon. The re-constructed lookout would serve many purposes, including: traditional fire detection; site monitoring, and; providing interpretive services to the Forest visitors. Over time, this partnership has proven very effective at promoting appreciation for the heritage, geologic, and scenic values offered by the area.
In 1933, a “grange hall” style L-4 lookout cabin was constructed atop Sand Mountain, and was staffed continuously for many summers. The lookout survived the 7,200-acre Big Lake Airstrip Fire of 1967 only to burn down ironically the next season on a foggy evening while the staffer was running errands in nearby Sisters, Oregon.
The Forest Service placed a trailer with a pop-up cupola atop Sand Mountain for the 1969 fire season, but with a growing network of roads and increasing reliance upon aerial detection, lookouts were being largely abandoned in the late 1960s. For a time, Sand Mountain was only used as a lookout site by mobile patrols.
In the aftermath of the Big Lake Airstrip Fire, increasing off-road vehicle use was causing damage to the heritage and fragile geologic resources of the Sand Mountain Volcanic Alignment. Recognizing the need to take action, a group of concerned citizens formed the Sand Mountain Society and entered into a model partnership with the USDA Forest Service to encourage compatible use and protect resources in the area. The SMS and USFS collaborated to relocate an abandoned “grange hall L-4” fire lookout (of vintage identical to the original Sand Mountain Lookout) from Whisky Peak on the Rogue River National Forest in Southern Oregon. The re-constructed lookout would serve many purposes, including: traditional fire detection; site monitoring, and; providing interpretive services to the Forest visitors. Over time, this partnership has proven very effective at promoting appreciation for the heritage, geologic, and scenic values offered by the area.
2015 marks the 25th anniversary of the dedication of Sand Mountain Lookout. At that ceremony, Sand Mountain was honored to be the first lookout listed on the Forest Fire Lookout Association’s National Historic Lookout Register.
The Sand Mountain Society has subsequently worked on several heritage preservation projects throughout the Pacific Northwest, and their volunteers donate hundreds of hours of labor to these projects each year. The group has received numerous awards, including the Doug Newman Award (2003), Historic Preservation Award (Mt. Hood National Forest 2005); USFS Windows on the Past Award (2007), and; Oregon Heritage Excellence Award (State Historic Preservation Office 2014).
PHOTOS OF SAND MOUNTAIN LOOKOUT
