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Fire lookout · Missoula County, Montana

Blue Mountain Lookout (Lolo NF)

Also known as Blue Mountain

Standing R-6 tower six miles from Missoula; site developed 1934, present tower built 1957 at Davis Point and moved here in 1966.

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?
Yes, you can drive up
Staffing
Unknown

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Cab on a towerR-6The designs: R-6, L-4
Built of
Wood
Built
1934
Height
41 ft (12.5 m)
Elevation
6,366 ft (1,940 m)
Agency
U.S. Forest Service
Land
Federal land
Location
Missoula County, Montana
Coordinates
46.81472, −114.18664
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-mt-blue-mountain-lolo-nf

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 4.1 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. 1934 BuiltSite developed with a 40-ft pole tower and L-4 cabSource: firelookout.com
  2. No record between 1934 and 1952
  3. 1952 EventRed Skies of Montana filmed on location; the register ties the tower to the film, which conflicts with the 1957 build dateSources: nhlr.org, 930kmpt.com
  4. 1957 BuiltPresent 41-ft tower built at Davis PointSources: firelookout.com, 930kmpt.com
  5. 1966 MovedMoved from Davis Point to Blue Mountain to replace an older timber towerSources: firelookout.com, 930kmpt.com
  6. No record between 1966 and 1996
  7. 1996 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered June 5, 1996Source: nhlr.org
  8. No record between 1996 and 2013
  9. 2013 ClosedClosed for the summer for repairsSource: 930kmpt.com
  10. 2013 FireLolo Creek Complex fire, still several miles from the tower's northern edge; tower being fire-wrapped and sprinklers put in as a precautionSource: 930kmpt.com
  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.

The Blue Mountain lookout sits six miles southwest of Missoula, in the Lolo National Forest.1 The site was developed in 1934 with a 40-foot pole tower and an L-4 cab.1

The tower that stands there now came later. It was built in 1957 at Davis Point, another lookout site, and moved to Blue Mountain in 1966 to replace an older timber tower.1,2 The present tower is 41 feet tall with a flat R-6 cab, and its windows were angled outward to cut glare.1 The National Historic Lookout Register listed it on June 5, 1996.3

The register says the tower was used in filming Red Skies of Montana while it stood on Davis Point.3 A 2013 KGVO report says that film was shot on location in 1952.2 Those dates do not fit a 1957 build, and the sources do not explain the gap.1,2

In August 2013 the northern edge of the Lolo Creek Complex fire was still several miles from the tower.2 Officials were protecting the structure with fire-wrap and putting sprinklers in, just in case the fire might reach the summit.2 The lookout had been closed for the summer for repairs at that time.2

Today the register calls Blue Mountain the last remaining active lookout on the Missoula Ranger District.3 Its nearness to Missoula draws many visitors, and proposals have been made to add an interpretive setting there.1 A 2013 report puts the lookout about 11 miles up a winding mountain road.2 I could not find a current statement on whether the tower's interior is open, so check with the Forest Service before you plan a visit.

  1. Blue Mtn. Fire Lookout Tower, firelookout.com, https://www.firelookout.com/mt/bluemtnl.html (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Update – Firefighters Protect Historic Blue Mountain Fire Lookout, KGVO, https://930kmpt.com/firefighters-protect-historic-blue-mountain-fire-lookout-audio/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Blue Mountain Lookout (Lolo NF), National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/mt/blue-mountain-lookout-lolo-nf/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Photo of Blue Mountain Lookout (Lolo NF)
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Blue Mtn. L.O.
Blue Mtn. L.OPhoto: Gary Weber and Dave Bula, via firelookout.com · source
Blue Mtn. L.O.
Blue Mtn. L.OPhoto: Gary Weber and Dave Bula, via firelookout.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.

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, 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. OpenStreetMap -- fire lookout structures Gave us: links © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0. (c) OpenStreetMap contributors. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  5. 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
  6. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, height, status, agency, 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

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