Gem Peak Lookout Rental

We did a roadtrip visiting and stay in 7 different fire lookouts 7 days in a row, bringing our cat along with us. If you want more information about that, find me on YouTube @JoelKalich.

Location and Access:
This lookout features a gate that guests are encouraged to close for proper privacy. The roads up to the lookout were in great condition until the last 2.1 miles, which was rather rough. My lifted Volvo XC70 had no issues and I'd expect a stock subaru to be fine as well, as long as you have good tires.

The lookout:
This was, hands down, the best maintained and stocked fire lookout on our trip. It was our favorite structure. It was also one of the three, of the seven we visited, where you could not see any lights in the distance at night - it felt extremely secluded. The table was a dining-room-style table and was great for playing cards. The mattresses were some of the best on our journey. The windows had custom window screens that were the best we saw on our trip, allowing us to get a great cross-breeze going, while containing the kitty. Additionally, it was the second highest tower on our journey, at 30 feet high, 10 feed shorter than Deer Ridge. There was a fairy light thing mounted for mood lighting. Considering I carry loads of batteries for cameras and whatnot, I was able to make sure we left it fully charged for the next visitors. It was a small thing. The toilet was close to the lookout with minimal elevation required to get to it. It was clean and well stocked with TP when we visited. Of all the lookouts we visited, this is the one we're most likely to come back to for a longer stay.

Lookout was very sturdy, even in a pretty aggressive wind storm. No sink to wash dishes and pretty bare bones for cleaning supplies and cooking utensils, so bring everything like you are camping. The two cots were comfortable. We hiked to idaho mountain to the ID/MT boarder, very narrow rough road, but beautiful views up top, and you can see ripple rocks from the glaciers!