Lookout Site Regions: ORIGIN SITE ~ North Central WA, RE-LO SITE ~ North Central WA
This is an example of a Type 2 re-location. The Buttermilk Butte entry in Ray Kresek’s Fire Lookouts of the Northwest states that the lookout was: “Sold to Norm Reynaud & moved to ranch 4 mi w of Twisp in 1951”. The L-4 cab lookout had been built in 1934 on a 5471’ high ridge of Buttermilk Butte. Since this ORIGIN SITE was only 10 miles southwest of Twisp, the move to Reynaud’s ranch was short.
Both the ORIGIN SITE and the RE-LO SITE can be driven to. The re-located lookout is still there on private property. It is alongside a gravel road and can be seen from the road. The owners should be asked for permission to visit the lookout.
The Buttermilk Butte LO is moved to Norm Reynaud’s farm.
The L-4 cab was moved from the ORIGIN SITE on Buttermilk Butte to the RE-LO SITE in the Twisp River Valley.
We visited the Buttermilk Butte L-4 cab at its current location on October 7, 2020.
The cab was in fair shape for an 86 year old building, but it still could use some tender loving care. The inside was almost bare, with little of the original fire detection equipment or furnishings there.
We visited the original Buttermilk Butte Lookout site on June, 3, 2015.
Most of the sources agree that the lookout here had been built in 1934, but there is some evidence that it might have been late 1934 or a little later. Panoramic photos were taken here on 9/2/1934 and the data sheets state that the camera was 3′ above the ground. The lookout does not show in the 360 degree view contained in these panoramics, indicating that the lookout was not in place at that time.
