Fire Lookout Books

BOOKS ABOUT FIRE LOOKOUTS


Several interesting books have been written about lookouts, anything from lookout life to lookout site documentation. Here's a small sampling of titles.


Aiken, Mark. Hiking Fire Lookouts: New England. Guilford, CT: Falcon Guides, 2023.

Baird, Iris W. and Chris Haartz. A Field Guide To New Hampshire Firetowers. Published for the Third Annual Conference of the Forest Fire Lookout Association, 1992.

Barr, Peter J. Hiking North Carolina's Lookout Towers. Winston-Salem NC: John F. Blair, 2008.

Barr, Peter J. Exploring North Carolina's Lookout Towers. Durham NC: Blair, 2021.

Bates, Malcolm S. Three Fingers: The Mountain, The Men and A Lookout. Seattle: Mountaineers Press, 1987.

Beaty, Jeanne Kellar. Lookout Wife. New York: Random House, 1953.

Bill, Joe. Climbing the Ladder Less Traveled. Fountain Hills AZ: Mountain Forest Publishing, 2002.

Boyle, Dixie. Between Land & Sky: A Fire Lookout Story. Denver: Outskirts Press, Inc., 2007.

Boyle, Dixie. Watch Tower to Watch Tower: A Fire Lookout Story. Self-published, 2021.

Boyle, Myrl C. Lookout Mountain. New York: Van Rees Press, 1957.*

Butler, David R. Fire Lookouts of Glacier National Park. Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2014.

Calahan, David. Snow Camp Lookout: View With A Room, Mouse Included. Medford: In-Forms Publishing, 1996. To order, call David directly at (541) 899-7282.

Casali, Amber. Hiking Washington's Fire Lookouts. Seattle: Mountaineers Books, 2018.

Cerney, Jan, and Roberta Sago. Black Hills National Forest: Harney Peak and the Historic Fire Lookout Towers. Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2011.

Clark, Frank. National Park Lookout. Available as Kindle eBook via Amazon, 2020.

Connors, Phillip. Fire Season: Field Notes From A Wilderness Lookout. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 2011.

Crawford, John. Above It All. Stevensville: Stoneydale Press Publishing Co., 2022.

Dumuth, Vivian. Eyes of the Forest. Grand Prairie AB: Smoky Peace Press, 2007.

English, Jane and Bonnie Eddy, ed. Mount Shasta's Black Butte. 2006.

Evans, Mary Ann. Fire In Their Eyes: Sequoia National Forest Lookouts. 2006.

Foley, Tom and Tish Steinfeld. How To Rent A Fire Lookout In The Pacific Northwest. Berkeley: The Wilderness Press, 1996.

Frakes, Bob. Remembering Missouri's Lookout Towers.. Salem, Ill.: Words Matter Publishing, 2019.

Freeman, John P. Views From On High: Fire Tower Trails in the Adirondacks and Catskills. Lake George NY: Adirondack Mountain Club Inc., 2001.

Garner, Barbara M. A View From The Top: Maryland's Fire Towers. Baldwin MD: Abecedarian Books, Inc, 2012.

Gatesy, Carolyne I. Firetowers, Lookouts & Rustic Cabins For Rent. Glastonbury CT: Bear Mountain Press, 1997.

Gould, Curtis E., with Tim Gould. Fire Lookouts & Mountain Climbing in Oregon: 1920-1948. Middletown DE, 2017.

Green Mountain Club. 360 Degrees: A Guide to Vermont's Fire and Observation Towers. Waterbury Center: Green Mountain Club, 2005.

Hall,Robert. The Last Man On Red Mountain. 2019.

Hammond, Nancy Sule. The Last Lookout on Dunn Peak. Pullman: Basalt Books, 2023.

Hardy, Martha. Tatoosh. Seattle: Mountaineers Press, 1980.

Hatch, Judy. The Dragonfly of Lookout Mountain Mt Shasta: Earth Heart, 1996.*

Hill, Cheryl. Images of America: Fire Lookouts of Oregon. Charlston: Arcadia Publishing, 2016.

Hilton, David N. From York To The Allagash: Forest Fire Lookouts Of Maine. Greenville: Moosehead Communications, 1997.

Holland, Andy. Switchbacks. Seattle: Mountaineers Press, 1980.

Holm, Richard H., Jr. Points of Prominence: Fire Lookouts of the Payette National Forest. 2009.

Holstine, Craig E. Forgotten Corner: A History Of The Colville National Forest, Washington. Colville: Statesman-Examiner, Inc., 1987.

Johnson, Alice A. Walls Of Glass On A Mountaintop. Laramie: Jelm Mountain Publications, 1990.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 1): The Early Years. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 2): The Middle Years. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 3): The Later Years. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 4): Of Mules and Men. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 5): Where There's Smoke. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 6): Hot, Dry, Windy, Wet, Frozen, Electrified & Horrified. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 7): Life and Limb. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 8): Women in High Places. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 9): Smoke Signals, Dynamite, Pigeons, Heliographs, Telephones and Radios. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 10): Rattlesnakes, Porcupines, Cougars and Bears. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2017.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 11): Endings and Oddities. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2018.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 12): Vandals, Thieves & Firebugs. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2018.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookouts (Volume 13): Civilian Conservation Corps. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2018.

Kemnow, La Vaughn Vanderburg. Fire Lookout Outhouses. MountAinsWest Publishing, 2018.

Kester, Jack. Fire Tower. New York: Funk and Wagnalls Co., 1960.*

Kingsbury, Ruth Foote. Lookout Tower. Caldwell: Caxton Printers, 1957.*

Laskey, Paul. The Fire Observation Towers of New York State. Ballston Spa, NY: MKL Publishing, 2003.

Lodder, Robert. Fish Creek: A Western Adventure. Bloomington, IN: AuthorHouse, 2005.

Kresek, Ray. Fire Lookouts Of The Northwest. Fairfield: Ye Galleon Press, 1984, 1998.

Maughan, Jackie Johnson. Go Tell It On The Mountain: A Collection Of Essays, Stories, And Journal Writings By Fire Lookouts. Pennsylvania: Stackpole Books, 1996.

Moore, Eileen. Standing Watch: The Fire Towers of Arizona. Flagstaff: Morton Moore Publishing, 2006.

Newman, Doug. Finding Fire: A Personal History of Fire Lookouts in Lane County, Oregon. Eugene OR: Lane County Historical Society, 2007.

Podskoch, Martin. Adirondack Fire Towers: Their History and Lore, The Southern Districts. Fleischmanns NY: Purple Moutain Press, 2003.

Podskoch, Martin. Fire Towers of the Catskills: Their History and Lore. Fleischmanns NY: Purple Mountain Press, 2000.

Pomeroy, Pete. The Mallory Burn. New York: Grosset & Dunlap, Inc., 1971.*

Potter, Mike. Fire Lookout Hikes In The Canadian Rockies. Banff: Luminous Compositions, 1998 & 2008 (updated).

Rains, Steve. Northwest Montana Fire Lookouts: A Hiking Guide. Kalispell: Discover Montana Guidebooks, 2013.

Rains, Steve. Northwest Montana Fire Lookouts: A Hiking Guide, Volume Two. Kalispell: Discover Montana Guidebooks, 2017.

Romer, Leslie. Lost Fire Lookout Hikes and Histories: Olympic Peninsula and Willapa Hills. Bellingham: Sidekick Press, 2021.

Scheese, Don. Mountains of Memory: A Fire Lookout's Life in the River of No Return Wilderness. Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2001.

Siskiyou Pioneer. The Fire Lookouts of Siskiyou County. Yreka: Siskiyou County Historical Society, 2017.

Sorrell, Robert. Blue Ridge Fire Towers. Charleston: The History Press, 2015.

Spring, Ira and Byron Fish. Lookouts: Firewatchers Of The Cascades And Olympics. Seattle: Mountaineers Press, 1980 & 1996.

Stratton, Sharon. Between Forest and Sky: A Fire-Tower Journal. Surrey BC: Heritage House Publishing Company, 2006.

Suiter, John. Poets on the Peaks. Washington D.C.: Counterpoint, 2002.

U.S. Forest Service. The Lookout Cookbook Region One. Colville: Reissued by the Stevens County Historical Society, 1986.

Wall, Cynthia. Firewatch! Newington CT: The American Radio Relay League, 1993.*

Vail, Esther C. Snow King Lookout. Ginn and Company, 1964.*

Wheeler, Ruth. Smoke In The Sky. Mountain View CA: Pacific Press Publishing Association, 1956.*

Yahr, Warren. Smokechaser. Moscow: University of Idaho Press, 1995.


*=Fiction
This page created by Rex Kamstra.