Armstrong Mountain Lookout
WillhiteWeb.com
Elevation: 4,587 feet
Hiking Distance: Drive-up
Access: Overgrowing road but tread is fair for high-clearance 2WD
Built in 1939, the 100 foot Aermotor steel tower has been the only lookout on this summit. The site has been abandoned since 1952 and the roof is currently gone. Trees are growing all around and up inside the structure but the tower is so tall, eventually you climb above them all. This is a really fun tower to climb.
Access:
From Omak, take Highway 155 to the Peel Creek Road, turn left and follow it to the Armstrong Mountain Road (see map). The road is in pretty good shape until the last mile or so where it is overgrowing. Many have driven the road in high-clearance 2WD to the summit. There is a gate but everyone has found it open in the last several years.
July 17, 1943: “Many teachers are employed this summer as fire lookouts in the Colville national forest, according to Chief Ranger Mel Robertson of Nespelem. Miss Bertha Owhi, Nespelem, on Armstrong mountain.” (The Colville Examiner)
Overgrowing road
Armstrong Mountain Lookout
Armstrong Mountain Lookout
Trees at the base
Rocky knob that is the highpoint of Armstrong Mountain
Looking west toward Moses Mountain
Looking Southeast
Armstrong Mountain (from the east)