Absolutely beautiful! The dirt road took me 22min, but a more cautious driver would take longer for sure Definitely wouldn’t want to make the drive without 4WD The sunset was perfect Wasps were annoying, but since we arrived at 7pm they were only out for around 30min. We ate dinner after sunset so they didn’t bother us then. Make sure you bring toilet paper, headlamps, a lantern, bed sheets, and a trash bag Blankets are probably better than a sleeping bag because it’s so hot at night Bringing your things up in backpacking backpack is super helpful, the walk would have been rough without that

1.5hrs drive from Burney Falls, which was spectacular. Bring your own cable lock to secure the lookout if you leave. We found a group of people trying to cut through the lock to break into the lookout when we returned on one of the evenings.

Hirz Mountain Lookout was one of the more unique camping/hiking experiences I’ve had. The views from the top are absolutely beautiful, especially during sunset, and the stargazing at night was incredible with very little light pollution. The lookout tower itself is really cool and made for an unforgettable overnight experience. That said, the hike up is no joke. It’s steep, rocky, and pretty brutal in the spring/summer heat. We decided not to haul all of our gear up because of how difficult the climb was. Definitely pack light and bring plenty of water. It also gets extremely windy at night, so be prepared for that. One thing that surprised me was how well Verizon cell service worked at the top. Overall, it was a very unique and memorable experience, but I personally wouldn’t recommend it for an extended stay due to the challenging hike and exposure to the elements.