Fire lookout · Yuba County, California
Oregon Peak Lookout
1935 CCC-built Aermotor lookout in Yuba County, staffed by volunteers since 1992; NHLR-registered 2019; current staffing unconfirmed after 2021.
- Standing
- Restricted access
- Verified
Visit & stay
Not rentable. As far as we know, this lookout cannot be booked for overnight stays.
Access
Restricted access
Access is seasonal, gated or needs a permit. Check before you go. Public access restricted by a neighboring private scout campground (NHLR); station 2.2 miles from paved road (1991 survey)
- Can you climb it?
- Unknown
- Road to the top?
- Unknown
- Trail
- Station 2.2 miles from paved road; access restricted by a neighboring private campground (NHLR)
- Staffing
- Unknown
Facts
- Status
- Type
- Cab on a tower60-foot Aermotor Company tower with a 7x7 observation cabin; station buildings built by the CCCThe design: Aermotor
- Built of
- SteelGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
- Built
- 1935
- Height
- 60 ft (18.3 m)
- Elevation
- 3,442 ft (1,049 m)
- Agency
- California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection - Nevada-Yuba-Placer Unit (Cal Fire NEU)
- Land
- Unknown
- Location
- Yuba County, California
- Coordinates
- 39.38802, −121.17693
- Registers
- This entry
- VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
- Firefinder id
us-ca-oregon-peak
View from the cab
What you see from the cab: every ridge out to about 93 miles, the named peaks in sight, and other fire lookouts within view, worked out from terrain data in your browser.
Downloads about 3.4 MB of terrain data the first time.
Or see what it could see on the map: the ground in its line of sight.
History
Then and now
- 1921 EventSite used for fire detection since 1921, per NHLRSource: nhlr.org
- 1935 BuiltNHLR build year; all three station structures built by the Civilian Conservation CorpsSource: nhlr.org
- 1946 EventConstruction of eight miles of telephone line from Challenge Ranger Station to the lookout started (November 1946 item)Source: californialookouts.weebly.com
- 1960 AlteredCDF remodeled the cab: catwalk, metal door, aluminum sliding windowsSource: nhlr.org
- No record between 1960 and 1992
- 1992 StaffedVolunteer (VIP) staffing begins after CDF stops funding paid lookouts; Oregon Peak becomes the pilot modelSource: yubanet.com
- 2002 StaffedStaffed in June 2002, per Peakbagging photo captionSource: peakbagging.com
- 2004 EventPeakbagging photo taken November 21, 2004; caption describes the lookout as in good condition and generally staffed in fire seasonSource: peakbagging.com
- 2008 StaffedNamed on CAL FIRE June 2008 list of lookouts that may be staffed in the fire seasonSource: citlink.net
- 2019 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered October 30, 2019 as US 1373, CA 196Source: nhlr.org
- TodayStandingIt still stands, as far as our sources know.
Old maps of this spot
USGS topographic maps from the years a lookout stood may show it, often as a small symbol labelled “Lookout”. See the old topo maps around it on the Firefinder map, or find every scanned sheet of this spot on USGS TopoView (opens another site) (click the spot there to list them, with dates and downloads).
Story
Researched 8 Oct 2026, fact-checked.
Oregon Peak is a heavily timbered ridge in Yuba County, west of New Bullards Bar Dam.1 The lookout sits on Oregon Ridge between Dobbins and Bullards Bar Reservoir.2 The National Historic Lookout Register says the site has been used for fire detection since 1921, and it gives 1935 as the build year for the present structures, all built by the Civilian Conservation Corps.1
An Aermotor Company product, the 60-foot tower carries a 7-by-7 observation cabin.1 The state remodeled that cab in 1960, giving it a catwalk, a metal door and aluminum sliding windows.1 A Nevada State Journal item from November 1946, quoted by Forest Lookouts, reported that construction had started on eight miles of telephone line connecting the Challenge Ranger Station and the lookout.3
In 1992, after the state stopped funding paid lookouts, volunteers began staffing the tower through a program called Volunteers In Prevention.2 Oregon Peak became the pilot for similar programs, and many lookouts across California followed its lead.2 Oregon Peak and other lookouts have been credited with many first reports of wildland fires over the years.2 A Peakbagging photo page, with a photo dated November 21, 2004, describes the lookout as sound and usually staffed in fire season.4 Cal Fire's June 2008 list named it among lookouts that might be staffed that year.5 A 2021 notice to volunteers said the tower would be closed for the season without enough people to staff it.6 That is the latest source I found, so current staffing is unconfirmed.6
The Forest Fire Lookout Association lists the tower as standing.7 The Register gives the registration date as October 30, 2019, as US 1373, CA 196.1
The Register says public access is restricted by a neighboring private campground run for scouting groups, and that the station is 2.2 miles from paved road.1 Cal Fire's 2008 list says it does not rent its lookouts.5 If you plan to visit, ask Cal Fire or the volunteer program first, and do not climb the tower without permission.
- Oregon Peak Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org), http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/ca/oregon-peak-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
- Oregon Peak Lookout Volunteers Celebrate 25 Years, YubaNet, https://yubanet.com/regional/oregon-peak-lookout-volunteers-celebrate-25-years/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
- Oregon Peak, Forest Lookouts (californialookouts.weebly.com), https://californialookouts.weebly.com/oregon-peak.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
- Oregon Peak Lookout, Yuba County, California, Peakbagging, http://peakbagging.com/CALookoutPhotos/OregonPk.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
- CAL FIRE Lookouts, CAL FIRE staffing list (June 2008), hosted at citlink.net, https://www.citlink.net/~dburnett/CAL%20FIRE%20DATA/Lookouts.pdf (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
- Oregon Peak Volunteer Lookouts 2021 Season, Yuba Watershed Protection & Fire Safe Council, https://yubafiresafe.org/oregon-peak-volunteer-lookouts-2021-season/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
- California Lookouts (by County), Forest Fire Lookout Association, https://firelookout.org/lookouts/us/ca/ca-co/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
Photos
Photos keep their own rights and are shown with credit. Is one of these yours? You can ask for a different credit or for removal.
Sources
- National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) (opens another site) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, what it is built of, register numbers, agency, dates, photos, links National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved (American Resources, Inc.); facts extracted only, no prose copied. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
- Forest Fire Lookout Association (FFLA) - US lookout lists (opens another site) Gave us: type, status, register numbers, links Forest Fire Lookout Association (firelookout.org) · No licence stated; facts extracted only, no prose copied. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
- FOREST LOOKOUTS -- western US (Ron Kemnow's weebly sites) (opens another site) Gave us: links Ron Kemnow's Forest Lookouts sites (westlookouts, californialookouts, idaholookouts, montanalookouts, oregonlookouts and washingtonlookouts .weebly.com) · No licence stated; facts only (county, land manager, status word, coordinates where the page's own map widget gives them, township-range-section, height and design hints, links). The site's own newspaper quotes, citations and narrative are not reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
- Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, height, status, agency, access, visiting details, dates, links, fact-check Firefinder research (sources cited in the story footnotes) · Our own research notes; each fact cites its source in the lookout's story
More about this lookout elsewhere
- NHLR register entry US 1373 (nhlr.org) (opens another site)
- Oregon Peak Lookout Volunteers Celebrate 25 Years (YubaNet) (opens another site)
- Oregon Peak Lookout, Yuba County, California (Peakbagging) (opens another site)
- CAL FIRE Lookouts (staffing list, June 2008) (CAL FIRE (copy hosted at citlink.net)) (opens another site)
- Oregon Peak Volunteer Lookouts 2021 Season (Yuba Watershed Protection & Fire Safe Council) (opens another site)
- California Lookouts (by County) (Forest Fire Lookout Association) (opens another site)
- FFLA California lookout list (firelookout.org) (opens another site)
- Oregon Peak Lookout on YouTube (opens another site)
- Oregon Peak on Forest Lookouts, western US (Ron Kemnow) (opens another site)
Firefinder takes facts (places, dates, numbers) from these sources and writes its own words. See all sources and licences.