Spyglass Lookout
US 900, ID 82
Lookout Details
| Registry Numbers | US 900, ID 82 (view other lookouts in United States, Idaho) |
| Date Registered | January 13, 2011 |
| Nominated by | Gary Weber |
| Location |
Coeur D'Alene National Forest Shoshone County, Idaho |
| Coordinates |
N 47° 50.500' W 116° 11.817' (view using Google Maps) N 47° 50' 30" W 116° 11' 49" N 47.841667° W 116.196944° |
| Elevation | 5,318 ft (1,621 m) |
| Built | 1950 |
| Administered by | U.S. Forest Service |
| Cooperators | Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District |
Description
Started in 1922 with a 20' platform tower, log cabin and barn, a 50' pole tower with 7'x7' cab replaced the first tower in 1930. In 1943, a gable roof L-4 cab was moved from another site for living quarters on the ground, later remodeled for storage, and is still on the summit. The present standard 53' CT-2 treated timber tower with standard 1936-model L-4 cab, built in 1950, was last staffed in 1978. Spyglass is unique in that it still has two generations of lookout structures, the 53' tower with L-4 cab, and the L-4 ground house. At the time of the 1973 consolidation in North Idaho, Spyglass was one of two Magee Ranger District Lookouts.
Map
Change Basemap
Photos
1920
1930-1950
Circa 1950
Spyglass Lookout in 2013. Photo by Luke Channer.
Spyglass Lookout in 2013. Photo by Luke Channer.
Observer residence in 2013. Photo by Luke Channer.
Visit Reports
September 20, 2014: Pat Ward
Condition |
|
| Needs paint? | No Response |
| Shutters OK? | No Response |
| Condition of wood OK? | No Response |
| Stairs OK? | No Response |
| Glass intact? | No Response |
| Good condition? | No Response |
| Comments: | I've been wanting to visit the Spyglass Lookout since my first Idaho hunting trip in 1979. After nearly 40 years of being well intentioned, I finally arranged a trip there on 9/20/2014. What I found was most disappointing. Two USFS personnel were blocking the approach road at a gate and were writing a citation for two individuals who had walked around the gate to view the lookout. They explained that their tower approach was an unauthorized trespass into a closed construction zone, and that the tower was being torn down. |
Electronics and Enroachments |
|
| Are electronic sites enroaching on tower? | No |
Access and Signs |
|
| NHLR sign posted? | No |
| Directions to tower signed? | No |
Staffing |
|
| Staffed? | No |
Opportunities for Volunteer Support |
|
| Volunteers staffing opportunities? | No Response |
| Volunteer maintenance opportunities? | No Response |