FirefinderFire lookouts of the US

Fire lookout · Snohomish County, Washington

Three Fingers Lookout

Also known as Three Fingers Mountain

L-4 cab bolted to a rock spire in the Boulder River Wilderness, staffed in the 1930s-40s, abandoned, restored in 1986, and now volunteer-maintained.

Visit & stay

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

Access

Open to the public. In the Boulder River Wilderness; reachable by a long, exposed hike/scramble, no road access.

Can you climb it?
No
Road to the top?
No, you have to hike
Trail
~16 miles round trip, ~5,000 ft gain, most hikers take two days; final approach involves scrambling.
Staffing
Not staffed (as of 1942 or 1943 (sources differ))

Facts

Status
Standing
Type
Ground-level cabL-4The design: L-4
Built of
Wood
Height
10 ft (3.0 m)
Elevation
6,603 ft (2,013 m)
Agency
U.S. Forest Service
Land
Federal land
Location
Snohomish County, Washington
Coordinates
48.16979, −121.68764
This entry
VerifiedResearched, then checked independently. Updated 8 Oct 2026.
Firefinder id
us-wa-three-fingers

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. 1929 EventEngles and Bedal scouted the peak as a lookout site.Sources: nhlr.org, en.wikipedia.org
  2. 1931 BuiltNHLR gives 1931 as the build/first-staffed year; Wikipedia/NRHP give construction spanning 1930-1932.Source: nhlr.org
  3. 1932 BuiltWikipedia/NRHP: construction completed over a three-year period, 1930 to 1932, by Harold Engles and Fred Benesh.Source: en.wikipedia.org
  4. 1933 First staffedWikipedia/NRHP: seasonal staffing began in 1933.Source: en.wikipedia.org
  5. 1942 AbandonedWikipedia/NRHP: staffed seasonally 1933-1942, then abandoned for financial reasons.Source: en.wikipedia.org
  6. 1943 AbandonedNHLR: staffed for ten years and abandoned in 1943.Source: nhlr.org
  7. No record between 1943 and 1986
  8. 1986 RestoredRestoration led by the daughter of the last observer, completed in 1986.Source: nhlr.org
  9. 1987 Listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesListed on the National Register of Historic Places, reference 87001190.Source: en.wikipedia.org
  10. 1993 Added to the National Historic Lookout RegisterNHLR date registered: July 15, 1993; also the year retired Ranger Engles died, having seen the restoration completed.Source: nhlr.org
  11. No record between 1993 and 2014
  12. 2014 RestoredRoof replaced.Source: mountaineers.org
  13. 2015 AlteredRoof replaced with cedar shingles, windows repaired, and cab repainted by Mountaineers volunteers, materials flown in by Snohomish County Sheriff's Office helicopter.Source: nhlr.org
  14. 2024 Condition assessmentLookout inspected and a detailed inventory made of materials on hand and items needed for repairs.Source: firelookout.org
  15. 2024 RestoredDamaged siding replaced and the rest sanded and repainted to match; new door with historic hardware, lock repaired, shutters, windows and locks repaired; new stools built.Sources: firelookout.org, firelookout.org
  16. 2025 RestoredFloor supports, siding and gable trim replaced.Source: mountaineers.org
  17. 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.

Three Fingers Lookout clings to a rock spire on Three Fingers Mountain, southwest of Darrington, in what's now the Boulder River Wilderness of the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.1,2 Darrington District Ranger Harold Engles and trail foreman Harry Bedal scouted the peak in 1929 as a fire-watch site, and construction followed over roughly three years, from 1930 to 1932.1,2 Crews blasted 15 feet off the pinnacle's top to make a level foundation, packed materials in by horse to within 600 feet of the summit, and then hauled everything the rest of the way by a tram and windlass rigged from telephone wire, finishing the climb on ropes and ladders.1,2 The finished building is a standard 14-by-14-foot L-4 cab, though it lacks the usual outside catwalk because the site's rock ledges left no room for one.2

The lookout was staffed seasonally, with the National Historic Lookout Register giving 1931 to 1943 and Wikipedia's account (drawing on the NRHP nomination) giving 1933 to 1942; either way, it was abandoned after about a decade of use, reportedly for financial reasons during wartime budget cuts.1,2

The building might have been lost to decay if not for the daughter of its last observer, who led a restoration effort completed in 1986.1 Retired Ranger Engles, who had pushed to save the lookout, lived to see the restored building before he died in August 1993.1 The Everett branch of The Mountaineers, a local climbing and hiking club, has maintained it since; its Three Fingers lookout and trail committee has kept up repairs since the mid-1990s.1,3 The lookout was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.2

By 2015 the roof was leaking and overdue for an overhaul, so Mountaineers volunteers replaced it with new cedar shingles, fixed windows, and repainted the cab. A Snohomish County Sheriff's Office helicopter — normally barred from wilderness work, but allowed here after a Forest Service review — flew in the roofing materials and tools by cargo net, saving volunteers from packing them in by hand.3

Reaching Three Fingers today is a serious undertaking: about 16 miles round trip with roughly 5,000 feet of elevation gain, which most hikers split over two days, and the final approach to the lookout itself involves exposed scrambling.3 It's not rented out; it stands as a volunteer-maintained destination for experienced hikers and climbers.

  1. Three Fingers Lookout, National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/lookouts/us/wa/three-fingers-lookout/ (accessed 2026-10-04). ↩
  2. Three Fingers Lookout, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Fingers_Lookout (accessed 2026-10-04). ↩
  3. Three Fingers fire lookout has a new roof, thanks to brave volunteers, The Herald (Everett, WA), via National Historic Lookout Register, http://nhlr.org/images/Lookout_Photos/ID68_Three_Fingers/herald2015.pdf (accessed 2026-10-04). ↩

Photos

Photo of Three Fingers Lookout
Photo: National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Three Fingers Lookout in February
Three Fingers Lookout in FebruaryPhoto: John Scurlock, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
2015 roof replacement (photo
2015 roof replacement (photo (2015)Photo: Gary Paull, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
2015 roof replacement (photo
2015 roof replacement (photo (2015)Photo: Gary Paull, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
2015 roof replacement (photo
2015 roof replacement (photo (2015)Photo: Gary Paull, via National Historic Lookout Register (nhlr.org) · All rights reserved · source
Three Fingers L.O.
Three Fingers L.OPhoto: the Fire Lookout Museum and David Inscho, via firelookout.com · source
Three Fingers in 1991
Three Fingers in 1991 (1991)Photo: the Fire Lookout Museum and David Inscho, via firelookout.com · source
Photo of Three Fingers Lookout
Photo: Synchman, via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Photo of Three Fingers Lookout
Photo: TrailChick Washington lookout guide (trailchick.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 the year it was built.

    • firelookout.com -- Rex Kamstra's Forest Fire Lookout Page: 1931
    • OpenStreetMap: 1933
    • TrailChick: Washington State Fire Lookouts: 1931
    • Forest Fire Lookout Association chapter reports: 1932

    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, 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: design, 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. The Mountaineers, Everett Branch Gave us: dates, links The Mountaineers, Everett Branch (mountaineers.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 Mountaineers page it comes from. Positions are copied from the NHLR records. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  5. Forest Fire Lookout Association chapter reports Gave us: dates, 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
  6. Wikidata -- US fire lookout towers (Q748998 and subclasses) Gave us: register numbers, photos, links Wikidata · CC0 1.0 (Wikidata). Images keep their own Commons licence/credit. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  7. OpenStreetMap -- fire lookout structures Gave us: what it is built of, register numbers, access, links © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL 1.0. (c) OpenStreetMap contributors. · retrieved 4 Oct 2026
  8. FOREST LOOKOUTS -- western US (Ron Kemnow's weebly sites) Gave us: height, 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
  9. TrailChick: Washington State Fire Lookouts Gave us: photos, links TrailChick (trailchick.com) · No licence stated; facts only (county, land manager, coordinates, elevation, lookout type, years built). The guide's text is not reproduced; its card photos are listed with credit to TrailChick, for the project's photo mirroring. · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  10. WillhiteWeb.com: Washington Fire Lookouts Gave us: links WillhiteWeb.com · No licence stated; names and page links only (the site's photos and text are not reproduced). · retrieved 8 Oct 2026
  11. Firefinder research Gave us: summary, design, 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

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