FirefinderFire lookouts of the US

Fire lookout · Josephine County, Oregon

Bolan Mountain Lookout

Built 1917, rebuilt 1953, burned in the 2020 Slater Fire, and rebuilt again in 2024 by the Siskiyou Mountain Club; now rented via Recreation.gov.

Visit & stay

You can rent this lookout for overnight stays through recreation.gov.

Overview In 2024, the Siskiyou Mountain Club partnered with the US Forest Service to rebuild the Bolan Mountain Lookout after it burned down in the Slater fire in 2020. For more information on this project, check out this short film created by Vincent DiFrancesco with the Siskiyou Mountain Club. https://youtu.be/wJYSNzqWCVo Bolan Mountain Lookout is surrounded by glass windows on all sides, providing visitors with an unparalleled view of the sheer drop-offs sharp cliffs, and breath-taking views of the rugged Siskiyou Mountains. The historic lookout is available for rent during the snow-free season with a maximum length of stay being 3 consecutive nights, and guests must bring several of their own amenities. Recreation Hikers may enjoy spending a day hiking the Bolan Lake Trail down to Bolan Lake. Hemmed in by conifer forest, the lake is stocked with trout, and is an ideal setting to enjoy fishing, non-motorized boating such as kayaking or picnicking at its banks. The lookout is also a prime spot for nature and scenic photography due to the stunning vistas provided. For visitors interested in astronomy, Stargazing is a popular activity on clear nights. Facilities The 14 x 14 foot one room cabin is designed to house a maximum of four people, and offers a primitive camping experience. The 30 to 40 steps up to the lookout are steep and uneven, so visitors should use caution when climbing to the main cabin. The room is equipped with a table, two chairs, a single bed with pad that folds out into two twins, cleaning supplies and a fire extinguisher. A vault toilet is located near the lookout. No water is available on site, so guests must pack in water for drinking, cooking and washing. Guests must also provide their own camp stove, light source, sleeping bag, towels, dish soap, matches, cooking gear, toilet paper and garbage bags. Natural Features From the lookout, guests are treated to expansive views of the Red Buttes and Siskiyou Wilderness areas, Preston Peak and Bolan Lake. To the north are far views of the Kalmiopsis Wilderness and the Illinois River Valley. On a clear day, even Mount Shasta is visible to the southeast. Bolan Lake is a 12 acre, high mountain lake with a shoreline of Douglas fir, pine and hemlock. A dip in the cool waters provides much needed relief from a hot summer day. Clear nights provide guests with a dazzling display of stars and planets. Nearby Attractions Oregon Caves National Monument Discover the "Marble Halls of Oregon" nestled deep inside the Siskiyou Mountains. The caves formed as rainwater from the ancient forest above dissolved the surrounding marble and created one of the world's few marble caves. The highly complex geology found at the Monument contributes to the unusual and rare plants and animals found nowhere else but here. Experience the extensively decorated and adventurous "Marble Halls of Oregon." Kalmiopsis Wilderness Kalmiopsis Wilderness is a wilderness area in the Siskiyou Mountains of southwestern Oregon, within the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest. It was designated wilderness by the United States Congress in 1964 and now comprises a total of 179,755 acres. There are approximately 153 miles of trails on 24 established hiking trails in the area. The Kalmiopsis Wilderness was named for Kalmiopsis leachiana, a slow-growing plant related to the rhododendron, which was discovered in the area in 1930. Red Buttes Wilderness The Unites States Congress designated the Red Buttes Wilderness in 1984 - it now includes a total of 19,940 acres. Management of the Red Buttes Wilderness, located on the California/Oregon border, is shared by the Klamath National Forest and the Rogue River - Siskiyou National Forest. The majority of the Wilderness lies within the boundaries of the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest."

Book on recreation.gov

Rental details from recreation.gov, checked 19 Oct 2026. Rules, fees and seasons change, so confirm on the booking page before you go. Data source: ridb.recreation.gov

Access

Open to the public. Rented through Recreation.gov during the snow-free season, up to 3 consecutive nights, up to 4 guests.

Can you climb it?
Yes
Road to the top?
Unknown
Trail
30 to 40 steep, uneven steps lead up to the cabin.
Staffing
Unknown

Facts

Status
Standing sources disagree
Type
Ground-level cabL-4, 14x14 ft hip-roof cab on a 15 ft wood tower (1953); legs later removed and cab set on a low stone base, catwalk later widened with a deck; rebuilt 2024 after the 2020 Slater FireThe designs: L-4, Cupola house
Built of
WoodGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
Also served as
Aircraft Warning Service postDuring the Second World War it was staffed to spot and report aircraft.
Height
Unknown
Elevation
6,169 ft (1,880 m)
Agency
U.S. Forest Service
Land
Federal land
Location
Josephine County, Oregon
Coordinates
42.01747, −123.45428
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 19 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-or-bolan-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.

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Or see what it could see on the map: the ground in its line of sight.

History

Then and now

  1. 1917 BuiltOriginal cupola cabin on a log crib baseSource: nhlr.org
  2. No record between 1917 and 1953
  3. 1953 Built'Built' field on NHLR detail pageSource: NHLR register entry
  4. 1953 Replaced by a new structureL-4 hip-roof 14x14 ft cab on a 15 ft wood tower replaced the 1917 cupola cabinSource: nhlr.org
  5. 1954 RebuiltThe lookout was rebuilt; the 2024 reconstruction copies this version.Source: fs.usda.gov
  6. No record between 1954 and 2003
  7. 2003 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered March 31, 2003Source: nhlr.org
  8. No record between 2003 and 2020
  9. 2020 BurnedDestroyed in the September 2020 Slater FireSources: firelookout.com, recreation.gov
  10. 2024 RebuiltRebuilt by the club, Forest Service staff and contractors in the image of the 1954 lookout with fire-resistant materials; finished in October after 2,000 hours of labor.Source: fs.usda.gov
  11. 2024 RestoredRebuilt by the Siskiyou Mountain Club in partnership with the U.S. Forest ServiceSource: recreation.gov
  12. 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 4 Oct 2026, fact-checked.

Bolan Mountain has carried a fire lookout since 1917, when the Forest Service built a cupola cabin on a log crib base, in what was then the Siskiyou National Forest.1 That first lookout stood for 36 years before being replaced in 1953 by an L-4-style cab, fourteen feet square under a hip roof, set on a fifteen-foot wood tower.1 At some later point the legs were taken down and the cab was lowered onto a low stone base, and the catwalk was widened with a deck added to one side.1

The lookout earned a place on the National Historic Lookout Register, registered March 31, 2003, with the Illinois Valley Ranger District as cooperator, and is kept on "emergency status."1

Then, in September 2020, the Slater Fire burned through the area and destroyed the structure.2,3 A longtime lookout-tracking site, firelookout.com, still marks it "R.I.P. 1953-2020," reflecting its status in the years before it was rebuilt.2

In 2024 the Siskiyou Mountain Club partnered with the Forest Service to rebuild the lookout after the fire.3 It again sits atop the mountain, wrapped in glass on every side, with views reaching the Red Buttes and Siskiyou Wilderness, Preston Peak and Bolan Lake, and on clear days, Mount Shasta to the southeast.3

Today the one-room, fourteen-by-fourteen-foot cabin is rented through Recreation.gov during the snow-free season, for stays of up to three consecutive nights and up to four guests.3 Thirty to forty steep, uneven steps lead up to the cabin, which has a table, two chairs, and a single bed that folds out into two twins, but no running water, so guests pack their own in; a vault toilet stands nearby.3 Bolan Lake, a short hike below, is stocked with trout and open for swimming and non-motorized boating.3

The result is a lookout that is as much a product of volunteer restoration as of the Forest Service crews who first built it: burned once, rebuilt twice, and once again open to anyone willing to carry in water for a night above the Siskiyous.

  1. Bolan Mountain Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/or/bolan-mountain-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-04). ↩
  2. Bolan Mtn. Fire Lookout Cabin, firelookout.com, https://www.firelookout.com/or/bolanmtn.html (accessed 2026-10-04). ↩
  3. Bolan Mountain Lookout campsite listing, Recreation.gov, https://www.recreation.gov/camping/campgrounds/234154 (accessed 2026-10-04). ↩

Photos

Bolan Mountain Lookout - 2019
Bolan Mountain Lookout - 2019 (2019)Photo: Cheryl Hill, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Bolan Mountain Lookout - 1944
Bolan Mountain Lookout - 1944 (1944)Photo: Siskiyou National Forest, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Lookout Remains - Fall 2020
Lookout Remains - Fall 2020 (2020)Photo: Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source

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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
    • recreation.gov: Standing
    • firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: Gone
    • OpenStreetMap: Standing
    • Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill): Standing
    • Siskiyou Mountain Club: Standing

    NHLR lists lookouts that were standing when registered. firelookout.com lists it, but not on its map of standing lookouts.

  • Sources disagree on the year it was built.

    • NHLR: 1953
    • Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill): 2025
    • Siskiyou Mountain Club: 1925

    Sources give different build years. Often one counts the first lookout on the site and another the structure there now.

Sources

  1. National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) Gave us: name, location, county, elevation, wartime use, 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. Recreation Information Database (recreation.gov) Gave us: ownership, access, rental details, links Data source: ridb.recreation.gov · Public data from the US government · retrieved 19 Oct 2026
  4. firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page Gave us: 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
  5. Siskiyou Mountain Club Gave us: dates, links Siskiyou Mountain Club (siskiyoumountainclub.org); USDA Forest Service, Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest · No licence stated; facts only (dates, what happened). Every note is our own wording and every event links to the page it comes from. The position is copied from the NHLR record. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  6. OpenStreetMap -- fire lookout structures Gave us: links © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0. (c) OpenStreetMap contributors. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  7. FOREST LOOKOUTS -- western US (Ron Kemnow's weebly sites) Gave us: what it is built of, design, 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
  8. Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill) Gave us: links Every Lookout in Oregon (Cheryl Hill, cherylhill.net) · No licence stated; facts only (name, agency, elevation, year built, design and height, status word, links). Posts' narrative and photos are not reproduced. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  9. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, 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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