Please note the Difficulty Rating of each hike and choose hikes within your personal physical limits. Space is limited, so be sure to sign up early!
We will meet at Town Pump in Plains, MT at 9:00am MT (8:00 PT) to carpool to the trailhead. We'll plan to return about 4:00pm MT.
Hike Description:Join Friends of Scotchman Peaks and Erika Scheuring, Archeologist with the Lolo National Forest for a hike up to Big Hole Lookout.
Big Hole Lookout was built in 1930 for what was originally called the Cabinet National Forest. It is a ‘Grange Hall’-type lookout: a structure built atop a short talus foundation. This type of lookout predates the standard design seen in most other areas, and due to the difficulty in its construction, is quite rare. In fact, Big Hole Lookout is one of only two lookouts of its kind on the Lolo that remain intact! It saw its last use as a fire lookout in 1972, and although afterward abandoned, was determined eligible for placement on the National Register of Historic places (NRHP) in 1984. It has been rehabilitated through a series of Passport in Time volunteer projects which finished in 2017.
This is a 6 mile out and back hike with a 1400 ft elevation gain. Bring lunch, snacks and plenty of water.
