FirefinderFire lookouts of the US

Fire lookout · Siskiyou County, California

Round Mountain Lookout

Modoc NF lookout near the Modoc-Siskiyou line: register dates the cab to 1937 with a 1956 rebuild; NHLR-registered 2019 and still staffed for fire detection.

Visit & stay

Not rentable. As far as we know, this lookout cannot be booked for overnight stays.

Access

Access unknown

We do not know the access rules. Check with the land manager before you go.

Can you climb it?
Unknown
Road to the top?
Unknown
Staffing
Unknown

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Two-story buildingCalifornia Region 5 BC-1401 cab, a 1949 revision of the BC-301, on a 9-foot block towerThe design: BC-301
Built of
WoodGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Built
1937
Height
Unknown
Elevation
5,180 ft (1,579 m)
Agency
US Forest Service, Modoc National Forest
Land
Federal land
Location
Siskiyou County, California
Coordinates
41.42740, −121.46257
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-ca-round-mountain

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 3.1 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

  1. 1922 StaffedA lookout person worked the site from a sighting table and a tent (peakbagging note)Source: peakbagging.com
  2. 1930 EventKlamath News item announcing construction of a standard lookout house on the summitSource: californialookouts.weebly.com
  3. 1937 BuiltCurrent cab built; the register and the peakbagging page agree on 1937Sources: nhlr.org, peakbagging.com
  4. 1944 Condition assessmentPlanning sheet asks for a lookout building with living quarters for two and calls the present structure inadequateSource: californialookouts.weebly.com
  5. 1946 FireRecord counts 30 first discoveries from the lookout between 1942 and 1946Source: californialookouts.weebly.com
  6. 1956 RebuiltRebuilt, per the register; the peakbagging page says rework or repairsSources: nhlr.org, peakbagging.com
  7. No record between 1956 and 2002
  8. 2002 AlteredExtensive remodelSources: nhlr.org, californialookouts.weebly.com
  9. No record between 2002 and 2019
  10. 2019 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered as US 1357, CA 180 on October 27, 2019Source: nhlr.org
  11. 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 (click the spot there to list them, with dates and downloads).

Story

Researched 8 Oct 2026, fact-checked.

Round Mountain lies almost on the Modoc-Siskiyou county line.1 The register places it in the Modoc National Forest, but a 1930 newspaper item says the point lay in the Shasta forest and was run by Modoc officers.2,1 The early record is patchy. A July 1930 Klamath News item, reproduced on the Forest Lookouts site, announced that construction would start on a standard lookout house on top of the mountain.1 A peakbagging page says a lookout worker was at the site as early as 1922, working from a sighting table and living out of a tent.3

The register dates the current lookout to 1937 and a rebuild in 1956. The peakbagging page gives 1937 as well, with repairs in 1956.2,3 The 1930 notice and the 1937 date do not line up, and the sources do not explain the gap.2,1

The register says the cab is a California Region 5 BC-1401, a 1949 revision of the BC-301, and that it sits on a nine-foot block tower.2 A 1944 planning sheet describes a lookout building with living quarters for two and calls the present structure inadequate.1 The lookout had an extensive remodel in 2002.2,1

A later record credits the lookout with 30 "first discoveries" between 1942 and 1946.1 The register says it continues to be staffed for fire detection, and the peakbagging page says it is usually staffed during the fire season.2,3

The 1930 notice describes a road that spirals around the mountainside to the summit, but that is a historic account.1 The sources do not say whether the public can drive up or climb to the lookout today. The register says it is still staffed, so check with the Modoc National Forest before going.2

The register lists the lookout as US 1357, CA 180, registered on October 27, 2019, and nominated by Brad Eells. It gives the summit at 5,180 feet, while the peakbagging page gives 5,256 feet.2,3

  1. Round Mountain, Forest Lookouts (californialookouts.weebly.com), https://californialookouts.weebly.com/round-mountain.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Round Mountain Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org), http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/ca/round-mountain-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Round Mountain Lookout, California, Peakbagging, http://www.peakbagging.com/CALookoutPhotos/RoundMtn.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Round Mountain Lookout - 2012
Round Mountain Lookout - 2012 (2012)Photo: www.peakbagging.com, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
2006
2006 (2006)Photo: Fred Johnson, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Photo of Round Mountain Lookout
Photo: www.peakbagging.com, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
2019
2019 (2019)Photo: Ron Kemnow, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Photo of Round Mountain Lookout
Photo: Modoc National Forest Archive, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Tree Lookout
Tree LookoutPhoto: Modoc National Forest Archive, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source

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

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, what it is built of, register numbers, agency, ownership, 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
  2. Forest Fire Lookout Association (FFLA) - US lookout lists 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
  3. OpenStreetMap -- fire lookout structures Gave us: links © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0. (c) OpenStreetMap contributors. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  4. FOREST LOOKOUTS -- western US (Ron Kemnow's weebly sites) 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
  5. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, agency, 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

Firefinder takes facts (places, dates, numbers) from these sources and writes its own words. See all sources and licences.