Warner Mountain Fire Lookout, Oregon - December 30, 2022-January 1, 2023

According to the US Forest Service, Warner Mountain Lookout, at an elevation of 5723 feet in the Willamette National Forest, is "the winter wonderland destination for avid winter sports enthusiasts looking for a challenge." My first reaction was, YES!!!!

Despite the remote location and the potentially long approach (up to 10 miles, depending on the snow line) this fire lookout is frequently booked solid for the winter. In summertime the USFS still utilizes Warner Mountain Lookout to watch for wildfires and does not rent it out to the public. My dedication to checking recreation.gov frequently (verging on obsessively!) paid off and I was able to secure a reservation for December 30, 2022-January 1, 2023. 

Friday, December 30, was a blustery day with dashes of rain. Upon reaching the snow line and determining that we could not drive any farther due to a large drift of snow, we began our ski to the lookout on a thin layer of slushy snow sprinkled with pine needles and branches under gray skies and increasing rain. The route leading to the lookout is a series of Forest Service roads which, although never steep, continually gain elevation. Soon enough the rain turned to heavy, somewhat wet snow and the weather continued to worsen as we climbed, following faint tracks from a previous party. However, we did need to break trail for most of the 6 miles we covered to the lookout-- quite a workout given the deep and solid snow, definitely earning its moniker of "Cascade Cement."

The final few hundred meters to the fire lookout is through a large meadow, marked by a series of orange poles and posts; we however picked a more direct line through the woods, turning off FS Road 439 at the gated driveway. The lookout loomed through the trees ahead - an inviting sight after over 3 hours of uphill skinning and endless breaking trail. As I climbed the metal stairs awkwardly in my ski boots with the howling wind relentlessly driving snow, I was eagerly anticipating being indoors. The six-foot-long trap door that accesses the deck of the fire lookout was unfortunately sealed shut with snow and ice, and having been loaded with several days' worth of snow was also quite heavy. After repeated efforts, a mighty heave by Jim finally forced the trap door open to our great relief and we dashed into the lookout and switched on its propane heater immediately. 

The next day in order to exit the fire lookout to use the outhouse down below I had to clear more snow and ice by chopping and scraping with my metal snow shovel since once again the snow and ice had glued the trap door to the deck edges and prevented it from opening. I had to brace myself against the lookout's wall and haul on the counterweight in order to finally pry the trap door free! We propped the trap door open before our final departure to ensure that the next party could access the fire lookout-- and since we happened to see them while we were exiting we also warned them about the trap door.

I've found that YouTube videos can be surprisingly helpful in scouting out a new area for backcountry skiing, particularly drone videos. For every backcountry shelter, people always seem to post videos of the interior which can be helpful in determining what to bring and how many people can sleep comfortably there.

Scanning caltopo.com, YouTube videos, and satellite images, I spotted some open (if gentle) slopes that promised potential ski opportunities near Warner Mountain Lookout-- but the hard, icy crust of newfallen snow from December 30-December 31 deterred us from pursuing much downhill skiing. We did ski cross-country style to the scenic overlook of Logger's Butte, a tall rocky outcropping approximately 2 miles on Forest Service Roads and meadows from Warner Mountain Lookout. Perched atop the butte is a bench dedicated to the memory of Floyd McKinney aka "Big Mike"; we paused there to enjoy the sweeping views as I assume Big Mike had done many times before us. 

Abundant animal tracks told many tales: hopping snowshoe hares, scampering squirrels, and a sauntering coyote, who paused to urinate on a small pine bough. The snowshoe hare tracks proliferated: each morning brought fresh tracks with the elusive bunnies daring to pass quite close to the man-made structures (fire lookout, outhouse, storage shed and weather station).

After a sunny start, December 31 turned stormy and we enjoyed a cozy if quiet New Year's Eve in the fire lookout. On January 1 the skies cleared, offering views of more distant peaks while the snow sparkled in the renewed sunshine. Our ski back to our waiting vehicle went smoothly, facilitated by jeep tracks that packed down the snow. Amazingly, some undoubtedly very specialized Jeeps had driven to within 1-1.5 miles of the lookout in a consolidated snowpack that we measured as being 94 cm/37 inches deep!

After an initial flatter stretch the route back does descend enough to merit stripping skins and gliding-- but then after the junction of FS Road 2129 and FS Road 439, where the sign indicating that the fire lookout is 3.7 miles away stands, the roads are too flat for any further downhill skiing and transitioning back to skins is a must. The contrast between our initial approach on December 30 and our exit on January 1 was quite extreme: from storm to sunshine and blue skies. We were able to catch many glimpses of the fire tower looking back plus see more of the scenery that had been shrouded in clouds on the 30th: a small unnamed lake, rolling hills, Diamond Peak... 

I hope we can return to Warner Mountain Lookout next winter and possibly enjoy better snow conditions for some downhill turns. Although even without much downhill skiing, the journey as well as the destination were both worthwhile: no wonder this fire lookout is so popular!  

Warner Mountain Fire Lookout

Resources

Strava

Approach to Warner Mountain Lookout:

Loggers Butte:

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