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Submission
Beautiful short and moderate hike, very quiet in this off-season. Had trail to selves until return leg, and even then only saw five people. We nearly had the campsite to ourselves for the night.
As you may know, the actual lookout tower burned down in 2011. What is left is still astounding, but not the same as a tower, so adjust your expectations accordingly.
When you get to the main staircase, it is tall, steep and fashioned with wood steps, some more warped than others. Halfway up this staircase, there is a redneck-engineered "gate" to stop you from going further. I suppose you can adventure further up if you like, but it seemed to us that past the gate the wooden steps were definitely in worse shape than further down. Proceed at your own caution past the stair-gate.
Regardless: incredible views. Great lunch spot. Bring binos!
Gate to lookout was locked but had been knocked down...decent runnable trail.
Campground closed due to the fires. Trail was open, and the vault toilet was available. 2 mile hike was moderate and well worth it!
The trail can be a bit hard to get to by car if you don’t have a GPS so I would recommend downloading the map beforehand.
The trek actually first goes up a mountain, down again m, then up towards needles peak. Although the way separates at one point, you just need look up and look for the peak (literally the highest point around you) and walk towards it.
Good for beginners and those walking dogs. I have been told that there were rattlesnakes but I didn’t see any myself.
The view is magnificent but the top top deck was burnt in a fire. (You still get a jaw dropping view so totally worth it)
I would recommend taking at least a bottle of water per person as it can get a bit hot.
Overall, 11/10 :)
