High Rock Lookout Restoration Project

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High Rock Lookout Restoration Project

All funding for this project comes from donations.

The High Rock Lookout Restoration Project is a partnership between the Gifford Pinchot National Forest Cowlitz Valley Ranger District; White Pass Country Historical Society and Sand Mountain Society.

05/05/2026

Our 2026 work has begun!

Over the past two weekends, workshops for new volunteers were held in Randle at the Cowlitz Valley Ranger District. SMS board member Rick McClure gave two great presentations: one about the High Rock project, specifically, then another on the principles of historic preservation.

After the classroom portion, the group assembled at the Carpenter’s Shop where Rick went over two Job Hazard Analysis (JHA)s in detail: one for shop work, and a little later the JHA pertaining to work in the field.

Work including planing raw 1x12 material then squaring it using a table saw. Replica bead board for the ceiling (to replace missing or damaged original pieces) was primed, painted and oiled.

The second weekend SMS member Rob put the lap joints on the 1 x 12s, then added a back cut on each board (to improve stability after installation). In the end, this beautifully milled lumber was carefully primed on all surfaces and then painted.

Last but not least, Bill and Rick collaborated to do a deep cleaning on the Carpenter’s Shop, which included Bill vacuuming almost all surfaces with a shop-vac, and Rick organizing and sorting through all supplies, doing general clean up, then, with Bill’s help, broke down the drying rack. Everyone helped stack and sticker the freshly painted 1 x 12s in the shop. By Saturday night, all materials were ready to go. The newly trained volunteers were a big help!

Rick also made two presentations in Packwood: one on Saturday about the trail systems of indigenous peoples in the area, and – along with Haley – a training session on Sunday for new trailhead volunteers.

STAY TUNED for an announcement on access to the trail this summer. There will be a period of closure, but not nearly as long as last hiking season. We appreciate everyone’s help in preventing vandalism and giving us space to complete the project!

04/02/2026

Want to learn more about how you can help with help restore High Rock Lookout this summer?
Go to our website or click the link in our bio to find out more and become a volunteer.

03/17/2026

The White Pass Country Museum is partnered with the Sand Mountain Society and US Forest Service to help restore High Rock Lookout.
If you would like to become a volunteer this summer visit our website, go to the link in our bio or click the link below.
High Rock Volunteer Interest Form https://forms.gle/1MCbNkVASxCKaTWB7

03/16/2026

Who is interested helping with High Rock in 2026 ?? We have several types of volunteer opportunities available with training sessions planned this spring - lend us a hand! Fill out the form at this link to get started: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSezMZkCxEI7eg4Ab0hPzfMDzvClf890AQAz1n_BW4Wy6aNlyA/viewform

01/04/2026

Has anyone visited High Rock Lookout in the last month? Share pics with us!

11/22/2025

Well… official work for this year is completed but volunteer Mary went up today to remove the last of the items left by the kitchen area. Good news: nothing broken or graffitied. Bad news: finding dog p**p bags AT THE TRAILHEAD, finding someone removed a ratchet strap from some of our materials to make a…thing to hang on to while walking down the rock?… removing the strap caused some of our materials to be blown into the crevasse… NOT good. Other things have been tampered with too. Things that will take time away from finishing the project … so, please enjoy the spectacular views, and do not move any of the items around the lookout. Shout out to hiker Carly for helping out today! The last of the trash was removed!

11/06/2025

This week’s update will be the last project update of 2025! We will post periodically over the winter as we share plans for 2026, but for now - here is our last update: Don and Mary met up this week at the forest service workshop in Randle for some of the less exciting tasks: folding up all the tents that were laid out to dry - the weather was poor when we broke down all the tents so with them came a lot of debris. The forest service has been allowing us to use some of their space to store things so we took this opportunity to go through all the things we brought down from the rock and put them neatly away. The next day the trail reopened to the public!! Volunteer Haley went up to check on things and bring a few last items off the trail. Now we look to all of you for help! We need EVERYONE to help us keep the lookout safe: if you are up there and you see anything amiss, message us here. If you see litter, pick it up. If you are so inclined, donate money thru this link: https://www.paypal.me/HighRockRestoration
And stay tuned: we will share our future plans as we confirm them. Thank you all again for your support!

10/30/2025

This week’s update: On Saturday October 25th, a team of five volunteers including SMS President Don Allen, Aidan H, Nathan P, Ethan E. and Glenn W. went up to move the ceiling lumber and other material stored below the lookout into the building and additionally secured the building for winter. They endured extreme winds and some ice and snow that was especially treacherous near the summit.

As has often been the case for this project, we had just the right folks for the task at just the right time, and everyone got along to get the job done swiftly. We formed a “bucket brigade” to move the material from beneath the lookout onto sawhorses staged inside the cabin such that everyone could hand off to the next person and the job got done quickly.

From Sara bringing dinner on Friday nights to Chris cutting up a watermelon for a big group of sherpas, to Mary having her solo stove blazing and s’mores supplies, Glenn continued the tradition of thoughtful generosity! When we got back out to the trailhead, all of us wet and cold, he pulled a two burner stove out of his vehicle and heated up a vat of milk chocolate and another of homemade spiced apple cider! It was just what the doctor ordered after such an outing! Glenn made a tough experience enjoyable and memorable with his kindness.

As we left, the rain turned to large snowflakes at the trailhead, and several inches of snow landed on the freshly secured lookout cabin at the summit over the next 48 hours.

We hope to get up there one more time if weather allows. This last four months has been a long road with so much accomplished and so many people to thank: from the volunteers at the trailhead and up top, Packwood Search and Reacue, to all the people behind the scenes at the museum, to all the people who have donated to fund the project. But we aren’t finished yet.
The trail closure ends this weekend and the public is welcome to hike the trail. However, the LOOKOUT BUILDING ITSELF WILL REMAIN CLOSED until we completely finish the project sometime next summer. More details on that in next week’s update!!

10/24/2025

Sorry this post is later than our usual weekly updates but we’ve been putting in long hours trying to beat the winter weather. Lots of photos in this post too!

The last 7-10 days of work really symbolized the vast level of volunteer participation and devotion to quality of work among what has become a really good crew that gives all they can. Emily C and Dave H came up to install the exterior siding on the north wall and they helped carry new flooring on their way in. This allowed us to finish the floor, which came up about 13" short using all recycled material.

With the help of Sara Osborn and her friends, Mykayala, Ryan, Sarah, Vincent, Christian, and Victoria, plus regulars Rick M, Dan F, and Mary P, we were able to demobilize our camp in short order just ahead of freezing rain and snow. All pack frames were in use multiple days as volunteers moved materials down the trail that won’t fare well in the winter weather, especially the very wet and very heavy canvas tents. Sara's crew also took great care mounting hinges on all the shutters and did beautiful work. Don and Rick hung the first shutter in driving wind and rain that turned to freezing rain.

The bad weather and strong winds also damaged our trailhead set-up so we had to remove it all (other than the orange closure netting and signage that the trail and lookout are still officially closed)

After the ice and snow melted, we came back with a wonderful group including Steve B, Tracy, Dean, and Casey C, Mary P, and Rob H, and we were able to hang all the remaining shutters. Rob and Mary stayed an additional day until after dark to wrap-up final details and secure the building. Yesterday we had a special group of volunteers who used their opportunity to help us move tools, liquids and chargers down the trail to squeeze in a small wedding ceremony!

Everyone was so helpful and really put thought into their work. A great team effort with a mix of new volunteers and veterans! This coming week we will have final tasks to complete, hopefully before the snow level drops.

Thank you for your continued support and patience. We will let you know when we completed our 2025 work and volunteer opportunities for 2026. Stay tuned!

10/15/2025

UPDATE: they didnt steal it they used it all and left us a huge mess to clean what kind of humans do this?

This week’s update: while the weather was bad and we could not work for safety reasons, people violated the federal closure order and stole camping gear and equipment. We caught four people on the trail today. Sad state of affairs when volunteers cannot do something good without others ruining it. STAY OFF THE TRAIL AND STOP STEALING

10/08/2025

This week’s update: Friday at the Packwood Museum, SMS Board Member Rick McClure gave a fabulous, thorough update on the project, really demonstrating the enormous time and effort put into the planning and ex*****on of all aspects of this restoration. Up top,
SMS President Don Allen and volunteers accomplished the following:
Installed all of interior east wall and 75% of west interior wall;
Installed flashing on corners of lower walls;
Installed temporary ridge cap on roof;
Scraped excess paint from door and window glass;
Cleaned windows inside and out on three sides;
Thoroughly cleaned interior of lookout so that floor could be installed;
Primed underside of window sill all around and also nail heads on siding already installed (west and east);
Installed exterior siding on south wall (all four sides still need the 1x4 apron under the window sill, and the north side still needs to be done before we shut down for winter). Speaking of that, we will no longer need volunteers to haul cargo up the trail beyond October 19th. There will be opportunities again next spring and summer and beyond as we plan how to protect this historic lookout for years to come!

Address

12990 US Highway 12
Packwood, WA
98361

Telephone

+13604944422

Website

https://whitepasscountrymuseum.org/high-rock-fire-lookout/

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