Fivemile Butte Lookout

DO NOT FOLLOW GOOGLE MAPS IN WINTER! Follow directions from Dufur. Leave it better than you found it.
I read in one of my books that you need the NW Forest Pass and I checked with the ranger and that's what they said. But at the sno park it says sno park pass. You may want to recheck with the ranger again.
There was barely enough skiable snow but it was still fun on XC skis. The lookout is well stocked with large pot for melting snow, tea kettle, pans, and I donated a small pot which I hope will stay there forever! (please don't take!) Bring your own utensils.
Recommendations: bring slippers

I absolutely love five mile butte lookout. It has a special place in my heart! It’s hard work to get there, but so worth it.

Tip: do not follow google maps in the winter. Go to Dufur and proceed from there. Any other route to billy bob snow park will take you to dead ends :)

Limited pots and pans and silverware. Hopefully this summer, someone can bring up a few more things to enhance the set up.

I absolutely love five mile butte lookout. It has a special place in my heart! It’s hard work to get there, but so worth it.

Tip: do not follow google maps in the winter. Go to Dufur and proceed from there. Any other route to billy bob snow park will take you to dead ends :)

Limited pots and pans and silverware. Hopefully this summer, someone can bring up a few more things to enhance the set up.

The lookout is in great shape thanks to restoration efforts that wrapped up in 2021. The new floors are especially great! Don't forget to bring toilet paper with you just in case. We brought a roll for ourselves and good thing because there wasn't any up there.

The lookout is in great shape thanks to restoration efforts that wrapped up in 2021. The new floors are especially great! Don't forget to bring toilet paper with you just in case. We brought a roll for ourselves and good thing because there wasn't any up there.

The lookout was in great shape and exactly as described in the recreation.gov listing.
The oven and wood stove worked well, and we had a wonderful stay!

The lookout was in great shape and exactly as described in the recreation.gov listing.
The oven and wood stove worked well, and we had a wonderful stay!

You may find these driving directions (from Dufur) helpful: when you leave Dufur, the road will "Y" after 5 mi. Stay to the right. At approximately 16.4 mi, you will see the Billy Bob Sno Park on your left. The road to the cabin (4430) is directly across from this on your right. Then, in 0.6 mi, you will turn left on 120. After another 2.1 mi, turn left on 122. This last turn puts you on the long "driveway" to the cabin.
There were a couple of frying pans, 2 plates and 2 cups but we recommend bringing a pot and eating/cooking utensils. We assumed these would be up there but we were wrong. There were a few sheets of newspaper for starting the wood burning stove but I don't know if that will be re-stocked by the Forest Service so you may want to bring some paper of your own. Speaking of paper, it wouldn't be a bad idea to bring your own roll of TP. The solar lights were not working at the time of our visit but there were two bright lanterns that each took 4 D-cell batteries. I recommend bringing a couple of candles if you want a romantic touch but make sure they are safely housed so as not to be a fire hazard. We bought a tub for doing dishes in and left it up there.
Our stay in the cabin was wonderful. We had clear mornings with views of 3 peaks (Hood, Adams and even a peak at Rainier). One night was extremely stormy but we were warm and secure in the sturdy tower.
I had a strong enough signal (Verizon) to set up a hot spot and (reluctantly) participate in a meeting for work that I couldn't reschedule.
We would love to stay here again.

You may find these driving directions (from Dufur) helpful: when you leave Dufur, the road will "Y" after 5 mi. Stay to the right. At approximately 16.4 mi, you will see the Billy Bob Sno Park on your left. The road to the cabin (4430) is directly across from this on your right. Then, in 0.6 mi, you will turn left on 120. After another 2.1 mi, turn left on 122. This last turn puts you on the long "driveway" to the cabin.
There were a couple of frying pans, 2 plates and 2 cups but we recommend bringing a pot and eating/cooking utensils. We assumed these would be up there but we were wrong. There were a few sheets of newspaper for starting the wood burning stove but I don't know if that will be re-stocked by the Forest Service so you may want to bring some paper of your own. Speaking of paper, it wouldn't be a bad idea to bring your own roll of TP. The solar lights were not working at the time of our visit but there were two bright lanterns that each took 4 D-cell batteries. I recommend bringing a couple of candles if you want a romantic touch but make sure they are safely housed so as not to be a fire hazard. We bought a tub for doing dishes in and left it up there.
Our stay in the cabin was wonderful. We had clear mornings with views of 3 peaks (Hood, Adams and even a peak at Rainier). One night was extremely stormy but we were warm and secure in the sturdy tower.
I had a strong enough signal (Verizon) to set up a hot spot and (reluctantly) participate in a meeting for work that I couldn't reschedule.
We would love to stay here again.

One of the coolest family adventures we have done to date!