fire lookouts
Smoke spotting stations
Fire lookouts are structures, typically towers, built in elevated locations to provide a vantage point for detecting wildfires in remote or forested areas.
They also refer to the people who staff these stations, scanning the horizon for smoke during fire season.
Once widespread across American forests, many fire lookouts have been replaced by aerial surveillance and satellite monitoring, though some remain active and others have been converted to rustic rental cabins.
She spent three summers working as a fire lookout in Montana.
- forest canopyUpper woodland leaf layer
- smoke plumeRising mass of combustion vapor
- watchtowerElevated structure for surveillance
- glass windowsTransparent building panels
- panoramic viewUnobstructed wide-angle sight
cabin · ranger · forest service · smoke detection · mountain ridge · binoculars · weather station · remote wilderness · off the grid · pack mules · alpine terrain · steep stairs · desert plateau · thermal imaging · historical photographs · coastal cliffs · dispatcher · two-way radio
- fire safetysmoke detectors, evacuation plan, smoke alarms, sprinklers, assembly point
- National ForestsAllegheny, Angeles, Angelina, Arapaho, Bitterroot
- CaliforniaLos Angeles, San Francisco, Hollywood, San Diego, Yosemite
- disaster preparednessemergency kit, evacuation plans, evacuation plan, early warning systems, storm shelter
- firefightershotshots, smokejumpers, probie, battalion chief, deputy chief
- park amenitiespicnic table, picnic areas, bathrooms, picnic tables, picnic bench