Meadow Butte Lookout Tree C17

Meadow Butte, located between Trout Lake and Glenwood, Wa., had a tree-top fire lookout built in the 1940s.  Amazingly, it’s still there.  Curious Gorge describes an off-trail route using the area’s unsigned logging roads to get to the lookout tree.  Curious Gorge also describes the lookout’s history….as well as what else you can see if you make the foray to check-out this odd piece of local history.

Here is the book I learned about the Meadow Butte Lookout Tree from.  Note how it says that the lookout is no longer there!?!

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Here are two photos of the lookout tree and its female fire lookout circa 1940s.  These two photos came from the WA Historical Society.

A woman climbs the ladder up to a fire lookout at the top of a ponderosa pine tree 1940

Meadow Butte Lookout

Here are some maps to help you along the way on your adventure to find the lookout tree:

Meadow Butte Lookout Tree overview 1

Meadow Butte Lookout Tree drive overview 1

Meadow Butte Lookout Tree hike 1

Meadow Butte Lookout Tree hike 2

Below are some pix from summer 2016 of the lookout tree and sights from Meadow Butte.  I haven’t shown close-up pix of the extant lookout up the tree because I want you to be surprised once you get there!The first is a view of expansive Conboy Lake from atop Meadow Butte.IMG_8196

The next is the lookout in silhouette:

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