Climbing the Fire Tower, and Pine Valley Cabin

Today before leaving Nebraska National Forest, we went to see the Scott Fire Tower.

Crossing the Middle Loup River into the Forest.

Top of Scott Fire Tower

Here is an article from the Custer County Chief, October 26, 2011:

Nebraska's Only Working Fire Lookout Tower Gets A Much-Needed Renovation, 

Just in Time for Deer Season

The Fire Lookout Tower at Halsey National Forest recently received a much-needed renovation because of safety concerns. The aging Scott Lookout Tower, the only working fire tower in Nebraska, has been out of commission the last two years.

Originally built in the mid-1940s, this is the third tower to stand on this location. The previous two are believed to have been lost to fires. To bring the current tower up to code, workers replaced all of the wood steps and decking, replaced handrails, and reinforced the base with concrete. The tower was also reshingled and repainted.

Used by rangers to spot fire outbreaks during high danger seasons, the tower had been closed because of increasing safety issues. Lack of budget funds have kept the tower closed until this summer when repairs were finally allocated for.  Meyers Construction in Merna won the bid for restoring the tower and is expected to complete work in the next couple of weeks.

The repaired tower will bring back a much needed tool to forest rangers for fighting fires in the country’s largest manmade forest. Seventy steps to the top, the main observation deck looms over the canopy allowing rangers to observe the 90,000 acres of the Bessey Forest District.

Observers man the tower during periods of critical fire danger. From the high altitude, forest service workers are able to spot smoke and direct fire personnel to suppress the hotspots before they get out of control.

Rangers use a device called an Osborne Fire Finder to determine directional bearing and lead fire crews to the wildfire. The great elevation of the tower also is a boon to communication, allowing workers to communicate in areas where cell phones may not have signal and landlines are nonexistent.

Climbing up...

The view!

There's our Jeep and four-wheelers down there...

Larry and Victoria

Sure enough, cell phones were back in working order up here above the treetops.  We had no signal, down below.

One of the lightning rods

Switching now to the 75-300mm lens...

Down on the ground again

Heading for Long Pine, 36 miles south of the South Dakota border.

Pine Valley Cabins

And here is our cabin.

The owner, visiting with Larry behind the cabin.

The owner's big, friendly white Lab peering in through the back patio door.

She looked at me so beseechingly, I couldn't help it, I had to give her a cracker.

The trees are thick with chickadees, nuthatches, Northern flickers, blue jays, and kestrels.

In the valley below, there's a volleyball net.

Victoria wishes her friends were here.  With a volleyball.

"Huh?!"

Victoria, starting the grill.  Earlier, we stopped at a grocery store in Ainsworth, and Larry got all the stuff he needs to grill bacon-wrapped filet of beet and potatoes.  We have salad and various other things, too -- oh, and stuff for pancakes in the morning.

But... he forgot aluminum foil.  So he went to find some.  Long Pine didn't have a store open that sold the stuff, so he had to go all the way back to Ainsworth.

AND! -- he got me a new pair of bright fuschia tennis shoes while he was at it!

This is Larry's shot of his supper -- he had to send it to Bobby.  They've had a running 'my food is yummier than yours' competition going on for several years now, I think, and it's showing no sign of winding down any time soon.