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Article by Malia Dietz
The fire lookout host program is currently one of several volunteer programs with the Southern California Mountains Foundation. They are now presently enrolling volunteers to staff fire lookouts.
Our local volunteers have many important jobs. Not only do they help protect our forest, they protect our local mountain communities as well as keeping communities along the forest boundary safe from the threat of fire.
There are currently 100 fire lookout locations that are still in operation in California. The local fire lookout towers are situated on Strawberry Peak in Twin Peaks, Keller Peak near Running Springs and Butler Peak in the Big Bear area. Wildfires must be identified quickly that way they can be brought under control in order to keep our mountain communities safe.
The program is looking for adult males and females who are over the age of 18. They must be not only dependable but also proficient, reliable, and have an awareness of other’s expectations. The new volunteer training will begin April 13th, 2019. Turning into a Fire Lookout host is no joking matter, it’s serious business and a great deal of fun!
Volunteers must go to 4 instructional courses: a two hour Orientation class, a three hour Natural History class, a seven hour Operations class, and a throughout the day In-Tower Training that places you in the fire lookout with an accomplished host.
For additional training dates please visit www.mountainsfoundation.org/fire-lookouts also locally you can contact coordinator Pam Morey, at (909) 225-1025 or e-mail her at pmorey@mountainsfoundation.org.
Strawberry Peak Fire Lookout is situated off Highway 18 in the San Bernardino Mountains close to the communities of Twin Peaks and Rim Forest (elev. 6,135 ft.). It gets its name from a strawberry ranch possessed by Bart Smithson from the 1870s-80s. The 30-foot tower you see today was worked in 1934 and is the second tower to be built there. Strawberry Peak tower is available to guests Memorial Day to December. Usually open half a month sooner and remains open for the rest of the fire season, if volunteers are accessible. A little fun fact about this foundation is that the earliest known fire lookout was built around 2,000 years prior on Mount Masada, west of the Dead Sea in present day Israel.
This wonderful foundation is a non-profit that assembles and moves people to take part in ecological citizenship. The mountains foundation succeeds in all they were set out to do by raising funds as well as arranging and organizing volunteers leading to the sustainability of our Southern California mountains. For more information, visit www.MountainsFoundation.org.