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Fire lookout · Herkimer County, New York

Rondaxe (Bald) Mountain Fire Tower

Also known as Rondaxe Mountain (Bald), Rondaxe Fire Tower, Bald Mountain Fire Tower, Bald (Rondaxe) Mountain Fire Tower

Wooden 1912 tower replaced by a steel tower in 1917 on Rondaxe (Bald) Mountain near Old Forge; closed 1990, restored by volunteers 2002-2005, climbable today.

Visit & stay

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

Access

Open to the public. Restored and climbable per Adirondack Explorer; trail is marked with DEC red markers

Can you climb it?
Yes
Road to the top?
No, you have to hike
Trail
Trailhead on Rondaxe Road off Route 28 at Fourth Lake; about 500 ft of climbing in just under a mile; the trail can be icy in December
Staffing
Not staffed (as of 2017-12-29)

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Cab on a tower35-foot Aermotor LS-40 steel tower with 7x7-foot steel cab (1917, replacing a wooden 1912 tower)The design: Aermotor LS-40
Built of
Wood
Built
1912
Height
35 ft (10.7 m)
Elevation
2,349 ft (716 m)
Agency
NYS Department of Environmental Conservation
Land
State land
Location
Herkimer County, New York
Coordinates
43.73830, −74.91360
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-ny-rondaxe-bald-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 3.9 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. 1912 BuiltWooden fire tower erected on the summitSources: nhlr.org, masterpieces.com
  2. 1917 Replaced by a new structureWooden tower replaced by the present steel tower with a 7x7-foot cabSources: nhlr.org, masterpieces.com
  3. No record between 1917 and 1990
  4. 1990 ClosedManned seasonally by rangers until 1990, then closed; the register calls it the last fire tower the state closedSources: nhlr.org, masterpieces.com, rtwarriors.com
  5. 1995 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered March 6, 1995 as NHLR US 112Source: nhlr.org
  6. 2003 RestoredVolunteers scraped rust, removed worn fencing and the lower steps, painted the tower in July and August, and on 20 September began fitting new treated steps.Source: masterpieces.com
  7. 2004 AlteredSecurity fencing went in along the stairs and platforms, and a steel safety railing inside the cab in November, the season's last big job.Sources: masterpieces.com, masterpieces.com
  8. 2004 RestoredFriends of Bald Mountain and NYSDEC (work began after 2002) scraped and painted the tower, replaced steps, cab floor, safety wire and windows, and repaired footings; reopened by 2004.Source: nysffla.org
  9. 2005 EventThe restored tower was formally reopened at a dedication with a ribbon cutting on 18 June; a new map table with an alidade was in the cab.Source: masterpieces.com
  10. 2005 RestoredRestored 2002-2005 by volunteers working with the DEC; reopened June 18, 2005Sources: masterpieces.com, rtwarriors.com, nhlr.org
  11. 2006 AlteredA new all-weather composite map table was installed in the cab on work days in late June and early July.Source: masterpieces.com
  12. 2007 RestoredA volunteer re-stained all the tower's steps, cab floor and landings.Source: masterpieces.com
  13. 2009 RestoredVolunteers re-stained the wooden steps, landings and other wood parts at a September work weekend, and hung a new swing safety door at the cab entrance.Source: masterpieces.com
  14. 2023 AlteredFred Knauf replaced the Bald Mountain cab's observer map table with a new UV-protected map, aligned on three peaks and screwed down (reported Sept 2023).Source: nysffla.org
  15. 2023 RestoredA DEC crew from Boonville repaired the worn tower steps, some missing bolts, in November.Source: masterpieces.com
  16. 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.

Rondaxe Mountain, also called Bald Mountain, rises in the Adirondacks above the Old Forge tourist area.1,2 A wooden fire tower went up on the summit in 1912.3 The steel tower that stands there today replaced it in 1917.3,1 The register describes that steel tower as 35 feet tall, with a 7-by-7-foot steel cab.1

The name has its own history, and the sources do not agree on it. Wikipedia says the mountain was officially renamed Rondaxe in 1912, around the time a tower went up on a mountain in Croghan with the same name.2 A note on the register page describes a different Bald Mountain tower near Old Forge that was removed after its ownership changed, around 1975.1

Rangers staffed the tower seasonally until 1990, and then it sat closed.3 A Road Trip Warriors post says more than 30 observers staffed it during 73 years of active service.4 Those observers reported smoke to forest rangers and logged planes crossing the Adirondacks during World War II.4

The state closed the tower in 1990, and the register calls Rondaxe the last fire tower the state closed.1 Volunteers working with the state's Department of Environmental Conservation restored the tower between 2002 and 2005.3 It reopened on June 18, 2005.4 The register page also says the tower is on the National Register of Historic Places, though I could not find a National Register record that confirms it.1

Today the Adirondack Explorer reports that the tower is restored and climbable.5 The trail gains roughly 500 feet over just under a mile, starting from a trailhead on Rondaxe Road, which leaves Route 28 at Fourth Lake.5 Wikipedia says it is the Adirondacks' most popular fire tower, drawing more than 15,000 visitors a year.2 A 2017 visit report suggests a volunteer steward on duty would help hikers, given the crowds.1 Volunteers also paint over graffiti often.1 In December the trail can be icy.4

  1. Rondaxe (Bald) Mountain Fire Tower, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/ny/rondaxe-bald-mountain-fire-tower/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  2. Bald Mountain (Herkimer County, New York), Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bald_Mountain_(Herkimer_County,_New_York) (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  3. Bald (Rondaxe) Fire Tower, Old Forge, NY Hiking Directions, Masterpieces (Friends of Bald Mountain), http://www.masterpieces.com/ClimbBald.htm (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  4. Bald Mountain Firetower: Old Forge, NY, Road Trip Warriors, https://rtwarriors.com/2019/12/19/bald-mountain-firetower-old-forge-ny/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩
  5. Featured Hike: Rondaxe Fire Tower, Bald Mountain, Adirondack Explorer, https://www.adirondackexplorer.org/recreation/featured-hike-bald-mountain-rondaxe-fire-tower-old-forge/ (accessed 2026-10-08). ↩

Photos

Photo of Rondaxe (Bald) Mountain Fire Tower
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Photo of Rondaxe (Bald) Mountain Fire Tower
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
1912--Wood Tower
1912--Wood Tower (1912)Photo: Bill Starr, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Postcard
PostcardPhoto: Paul Hartmann, 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, 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. Map and Coordinates List for NYS DEC Firetowers (Andy Arthur) Gave us: ownership, links Andy Arthur, andyarthur.org (CC BY 3.0) · CC BY 3.0, credit: Andy Arthur, andyarthur.org. Facts + short description text reused under that licence. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  4. FOREST LOOKOUTS -- eastern US (easternuslookouts.weebly.com) Gave us: height, links easternuslookouts.weebly.com · No licence stated; facts only (county, coordinates where the page's own map widget gives them, status, height, design hints, register links). The site's own historical quotes, newspaper citations and narrative are not reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  5. Forest Fire Lookout Association, New York State Chapter Gave us: dates, links Forest Fire Lookout Association, New York State Chapter (nysffla.org) · No licence stated; facts only (dates, names, the kind of work done). Every note is our own wording and every event links to the chapter newsletter it comes from. Positions are copied from the NHLR and FFLA records (the chapter publishes none). · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  6. Friends of Bald (Rondaxe) Mountain Gave us: staffing, dates, links Friends of Bald (Rondaxe) Mountain (masterpieces.com/bald.htm) · No licence stated; facts only (dates, names, the kind of work done). Every note is our own wording and every event links to the FoBM page it comes from. The position is copied from the NHLR record (FoBM publishes none). · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  7. Forest Fire Lookout Association chapter reports Gave us: links Forest Fire Lookout Association, chapter and restoration-grant reports (firelookout.org) · No licence stated; facts only (dates, names, the kind of work done). Every note is our own wording and every event links to the FFLA report it comes from. Positions are copied from the NHLR, FFLOS and FFLA records. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  8. OpenStreetMap -- fire lookout structures Gave us: links © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0. (c) OpenStreetMap contributors. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  9. FFLA chapters, affiliates and Friends groups: lookout pages FFLA chapters and Friends groups (each link names the group) · Links to the groups' own pages; facts only from the California-South chapter's tower table (register page, operator, condition). No text or photos reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  10. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, height, status, agency, access, staffing, 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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