Fire lookout · Clallam County, Washington
Kloshe Nanitch Lookout
Olympic NF cupola lookout built 1917 in Clallam County, WA; 1996 replica torn down in October 2012 after vandalism; site kept as a viewpoint.
- Gone
- Access unknown
- Verified
Gone: The lookout no longer stands. Only the site is left. The 1996 replica was torn down in October 2012 after vandalism.
Visit & stay
Gone: site only. The lookout no longer stands, so there is nothing to climb or rent.
Access
Access unknown
We do not know the access rules. Check with the land manager before you go.
- Road to the top?
- Unknown
Facts
- Status
- sources disagree
- Type
- Ground-level cabD-6 wooden cupola groundhouse (original, 1917); the 1996 replica reproduced the cupola designThe design: D-6
- Built of
- WoodGoing by its design; no source says so in words.
- Built
- 1917
- Height
- Unknown
- Elevation
- 3,147 ft (959 m)
- Agency
- U.S. Forest Service
- Land
- Federal land
- Location
- Clallam County, Washington
- Coordinates
- 48.08098, −124.07967
- This entry
- VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 9 Oct 2026.
- Firefinder id
us-wa-kloshe-nanitch
View from the cab
What the lookout saw from its 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.
This lookout is gone. The view is reconstructed from its recorded site and a typical height for a lookout like it.
Downloads about 4.5 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
- 1917 BuiltOriginal D-6 cupola cabin. Wikipedia and a 2003 register visit note say 1920s.Sources: nhlr.org, firetower.org, firelookout.com
- No record between 1917 and 1962
- 1962 DestroyedOriginal cab destroyed. FFLOS gives 1962; firelookout.com gives 1963.Sources: firetower.org, firelookout.com
- No record between 1962 and 1996
- 1996 Replaced by a new structureReplica built on the site. Wikipedia gives 1997.Sources: nhlr.org, firelookout.com, firetower.org
- 2004 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterRegistered March 22, 2004 as US 572, WA 54.Source: nhlr.org
- 2012 RemovedReplica torn down in October 2012 after vandalism.Sources: nhlr.org, firelookout.com, en.wikipedia.org
- 2020 Added to the Former Fire Lookout Sites RegisterRegistered February 11, 2020 as US 1912, WA 443.Source: firetower.org
- TodayGoneThe lookout no longer stands. Only the site is left.
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 (opens another site) (click the spot there to list them, with dates and downloads).
Story
Researched 9 Oct 2026, fact-checked.
Kloshe Nanitch was a fire lookout in Clallam County, Washington, about seven miles west of Lake Crescent in the Olympic National Forest.1,2 The register calls its first cab a D-6 wooden cupola groundhouse, built in 1917.1 Wikipedia says the lookout was built in the 1920s, and a 2003 visit note in the register calls the original a 1920s lookout, so the start date is not settled.3,1
The register says the cab was gradually dropped as a detection site after North Point Lookout was added.1 The sources we read do not say when that happened or who staffed the cab.
The Former Fire Lookout Sites register dates the loss of the original to 1962, with a replica following in 1996.4 firelookout.com gives 1963 for the original's loss.2 According to the National Historic Lookout Register, the Forest Service rebuilt the cupola design in 1996, meeting current building codes, for use as an interpretive site and rental.1 firelookout.com says state, federal and private funds paid for a replica meant as a barrier-free visitor center in summer and a rental in winter.2 Wikipedia dates the replica's construction to 1997.3 Vandalism and a lack of maintenance money led to it being torn down in October 2012.2,3
The National Historic Lookout Register registered it on March 22, 2004, and the Former Fire Lookout Sites register on February 11, 2020.1,4
Wikipedia says the area is maintained as a viewpoint, with picnic tables, a vault toilet and garbage facilities, but no water.3 We found no source that describes what remains of the cab, and none that confirms current road access. The register's directions run along Forest Service Road 3040, behind the Snider Work Center, which the register describes as seven miles of one-lane gravel with turnouts.1 Check with the Olympic National Forest before you go.
- Kloshe Nanitch Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/wa/kloshe-nanitch-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
- Kloshe Nanitch Fire Lookout Tower, firelookout.com, https://www.firelookout.com/wa/kloshe.html (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
- Kloshe Nanitch Lookout, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kloshe_Nanitch_Lookout (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
- Kloshe Nanitch Lookout Site, Former Fire Lookout Sites Register, http://firetower.org/lookouts/us/wa/kloshe-nanitch-lookout-site/ (accessed 2026-10-09). ↩
Photos
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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: Gone
- NHLR: Standing
- FFLOS: Replica
- firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: Gone
NHLR lists lookouts that were standing when registered. firelookout.com lists it, but not on its map of standing lookouts.
Sources
- National Historic Lookout Register (NHLR) (opens another site) 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
- Former Fire Lookout Sites Register (FFLOS) (opens another site) Gave us: register numbers, dates, photos, links Former Fire Lookout Sites Register (firetower.org) · All rights reserved (American Resources, Inc.); facts extracted only, no prose copied. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
- Forest Fire Lookout Association (FFLA) - US lookout lists (opens another site) 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
- firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page (opens another site) 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
- Wikidata -- US fire lookout towers (Q748998 and subclasses) (opens another site) Gave us: photos, links Wikidata · CC0 1.0 (Wikidata). Images keep their own Commons licence/credit. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
- Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, status, 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
- NHLR register entry US 572 (nhlr.org) (opens another site)
- FFLOS register entry US 1912 (firetower.org) (opens another site)
- FFLA Washington lookout list (firelookout.org) (opens another site)
- Wikipedia: Kloshe Nanitch Lookout (opens another site)
- View article on lookout removal by U.S. Forest Service (opens another site)
- Kloshe Nanitch on firelookout.com (Rex Kamstra) (opens another site)
- Wikidata item Q6421375 (opens another site)
Firefinder takes facts (places, dates, numbers) from these sources and writes its own words. See all sources and licences.