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Fire lookout · Idaho County, Idaho

Sheep Hill Lookout

Nez Perce NF R-6 cab built 1960 on a summit used since the 1920s; hike-in in the Frank Church Wilderness, staffed in summer, NHLR-registered 1997.

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. Hike-in only, deep in the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness. The cab is staffed in summer.

Can you climb it?
Unknown
Road to the top?
No, you have to hike
Trail
Hike-in only, inside the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness
Staffing
Staffed during fire season

Facts

Status
Standing sources disagree
Type
Two-story buildingR-6The designs: R-6, Cupola house
Built of
WoodGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Built
1928
Height
10 ft (3.0 m)
Elevation
8,358 ft (2,548 m)
Agency
U.S. Forest Service
Land
Federal land
Location
Idaho County, Idaho
Coordinates
45.58830, −115.08799
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-id-sheep-hill-2

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 4.0 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. 1928 BuiltLog cabin with cupola, the earlier structure on the summit. Replaced in 1960.Sources: nhlr.org, idahofirelookouts.com, firelookout.com
  2. No record between 1928 and 1960
  3. 1960 BuiltR-6 cab on a short base, replacing the 1928 cupola cabin. Base height is reported as 7, 8 or 10 feet depending on source.Sources: nhlr.org, idahofirelookouts.com, firelookout.com
  4. 1960 StaffedKnown-staff list places Doris and Bert Babcock in the 1960s and 1970s. Year shown is the start of the decade.Source: idahofirelookouts.com
  5. No record between 1960 and 1975
  6. 1975 EventRecorder Herald item (October 16, 1975), quoted by Forest Lookouts: Salmon National Forest to furnish a radio for installation at the lookout, to link with Butte Point lookout or direct to the North Fork river patrol.Source: idaholookouts.weebly.com
  7. No record between 1975 and 1997
  8. 1997 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered with the National Historic Lookout Register on August 25, 1997.Source: nhlr.org
  9. 2010 StaffedKnown-staff list names Betsy Booth.Source: idahofirelookouts.com
  10. 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.

Sheep Hill Lookout lies deep within the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness on the Nez Perce National Forest, about 24 miles southeast of Elk City.1,2 The site was in use as a camp by the early 1920s, and a log cabin with a cupola went up in 1928.2,1

In 1960 an R-6 cab replaced that cabin.1,2 The sources do not agree on how tall its base is. The registry gives 7 feet, a Forest Lookouts history page gives 8 feet of cinder block, and Firelookout.com and Idaho Fire Lookouts give 10 feet.1,3,2,4 Keeping Watch lists the lookout as "Built: 1928" with an R-6 cabin, which conflicts with the 1960 date given elsewhere.5,1

Idaho Fire Lookouts' known-staff list includes Doris and Bert Babcock in the 1960s and 1970s, and Betsy Booth in 2010.4 A 1975 item from the Recorder Herald, quoted on that same history page, reports that the Salmon National Forest would furnish a radio for installation at the lookout, which sits on the Nez Perce, to provide a radio link with Butte Point lookout or direct to the North Fork river patrol.3 The National Historic Lookout Register listed the site on August 25, 1997.1

Today the lookout is reported as staffed, but none of these pages dates that status. Firelookout.com describes summer staffing every year, and Keeping Watch describes seasonal staffing.2,5 Idaho Fire Lookouts describes it as a hike-in site that is actively staffed.4 Reaching it means a hike into wilderness, so plan for that before you go.

  1. Sheep Hill Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/id/sheep-hill-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Sheep Hill Fire Lookout Tower, Forest Fire Lookout (Rex Kamstra), https://www.firelookout.com/id/sheephill.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Sheep Hill, Forest Lookouts (Idaho), https://idaholookouts.weebly.com/sheep-hill.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  4. Sheep Hill Lookout, Idaho Fire Lookouts, https://www.idahofirelookouts.com/selway-region/sheep-hill-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  5. Sheep Hill Lookout, Keeping Watch, Center for Digital Inquiry and Learning, University of Idaho, https://cdil.lib.uidaho.edu/keeping-watch/items/sheep-hill.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Photo of Sheep Hill Lookout
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
2010
2010 (2010)Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
View from inside lookout 2010
View from inside lookout 2010 (2010)Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Sheep Hill in 1922
Sheep Hill in 1922 (1922)Photo: the Nez Perce N.F., the Fire Lookout Museum, and Luke Channer, via firelookout.com · source
Sheep Hill in 1928
Sheep Hill in 1928 (1928)Photo: the Nez Perce N.F., the Fire Lookout Museum, and Luke Channer, via firelookout.com · source
Sheep Hill in 1928
Sheep Hill in 1928 (1928)Photo: the Nez Perce N.F., the Fire Lookout Museum, and Luke Channer, via firelookout.com · source
Sheep Hill in 1961
Sheep Hill in 1961 (1961)Photo: the Nez Perce N.F., the Fire Lookout Museum, and Luke Channer, via firelookout.com · source
Sheep Hill in August 2010
Sheep Hill in August 2010 (2010)Photo: the Nez Perce N.F., the Fire Lookout Museum, and Luke Channer, via firelookout.com · source
Sheep Hill Lookout
Sheep Hill LookoutPhoto: idahofirelookouts.com · 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.

Where sources disagree

We show disagreements between sources instead of quietly picking one. If you know which is right, please tell us.

  • Sources disagree on whether it still stands.

    • FFLA: Standing
    • NHLR: Standing
    • firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: Standing
    • Idaho Fire Lookouts (idahofirelookouts.com): Gone

    NHLR lists lookouts that were standing when registered. idahofirelookouts.com's status is read from a short summary.

Sources

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, 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. firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page Gave us: what it is built of, design, height, staffing, dates, photos, links firelookout.com · No licence stated on the site; facts only (coordinates, elevation, built/destroyed years, design, agency). Photos mirrored with the site's stated credit. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  4. Idaho Fire Lookouts (idahofirelookouts.com) Gave us: links idahofirelookouts.com · No licence stated; facts only (coordinates, status/built/destroyed year parsed from each entry's short excerpt). Thumbnail photos mirrored with credit per the project's photo policy. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  5. Idaho Fire Lookouts (idahofirelookouts.com) Gave us: photos, links idahofirelookouts.com · No licence stated; facts only (coordinates, status/built/destroyed year parsed from each entry's short excerpt). Thumbnail photos mirrored with credit per the project's photo policy. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  6. 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
  7. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, 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

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