The next big prominent mountain north of Shafer Butte is Hawley Mountain. There is a lookout that is no longer staffed but maintained by ham radio operators. Being so close to Boise, there are people up in the area doing all kinds of things.

Summit Elevation: 7,301 feet
Hiking Distance: Drive-up
Elevation Gain: Drive-up
Prominence: 2,061 feet
County: Boise County
Access: Good Gravel/Dirt

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I came up from the southeast on a road called Placerville Road on my Idaho Gazetteer. I then took a nice gravel road labeled Ranch Road. This led to the top of Boise Ridge where the Harris Creek Road dropped down the other side. Took a right (north) onto the Hawley Mountain Road, a ok dirt road, followed it to the summit of Hawley Mountain. When I returned back, I stayed on Boise Ridge until I hit Bogus Basin Ski Area.

Idaho Hiking

Home

Parked just below the lookout

Hawley Mountain Lookout

Nearby fire

Looking west to Squaw Butte

The peakbagging crew

Views from Hawley Mountain

Views from Hawley Mountain

Idaho Lookouts

In 1935, an L-4 cab was placed on a 10-foot concrete base.

In 1959, the USGS described the lookout house as a standard white painted wooding building with a green shingled roof all about 14 feet square and 25 feet high to the peak of the roof. The wooden part of the building is placed upon a concrete base. Operated by the Forest Service.

In 1963, a two-story lookout house, R4-80 cab and concrete walled lower level was built.

In 1972 was a story about lookouts getting better protection from vandals. It said that Boise National Forest officials have been equipping lookouts with tape recorders that are activated whenever someone breaks into the lookouts. The recorders relay a message to ranger stations, fire dispatchers and the forest supervisor's office. Forest electronic technician (who designed the system) Harold Mead said that when people break into the buildings, they can not hear the alarm, nor see the tape player and they can't disconnect it even if they rip out every wire in the lookout. In October 1972, a youth who broke into a lookout atop Hawley Mountain was captured after a Boise County sheriffs plane and a forester from the Idaho City Ranger Station were dispatched to the scene. The youth was placed on probation and ordered to pay $157 in court costs and damages to the lookout, said forest officials.

Hawley Mountain Lookout in 1937