Black Mountain Fire Lookout

While wildfires in California may seem as if they are a more recent phenomena and in the news each year, they have actually been an issue for years and years. Throughout California are lookout points that used to be used to spot the fires. In the 1970's, other methods began to be used to identify danger and the towers speckling the landscape went unused. More recently, the towers have been restored by the National Forest Association and they are used for educating the public about wildfires. The hosts stationed at the towers occasionally still spot fires, but their main job is to educate the more than 15,000 people who visit the towers annually. The Black Mountain Fire Lookout is located in San Bernardino and lies at an elevation of nearly 8,000-feet. It is in the San Jacinto Mountains and open from 9 am until 5 pm during the fire season, late May through November. Volunteers staff the tower and teach visitors about fire prevention and safety. The tower was built in 1926 and was the third lookout in the area. The lookout offers views of Mt. Palomar Observatory, the Santa Rosa Mountains, san Gorgonio, and on clear days, the Pacific Ocean.