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Spend a Starry Night at the Morton Peak Fire Lookout
630 Bartlett RoadBig Bear Lake, CA 92315 Phone: (800) 424-4232About
Watch the sun set--and rise--from atop a San Bernardino Mountain aerie. There are seven fire lookouts in the San Bernardino National Forest , and lucky for campers, one puts out the welcome mat overnight. Once critical to spotting forest fires, the lookouts fell into disrepair when new fire-spotting technology made them obsolete. Several years back, the Forest Service slated the towers for demolition, but they were rescued by a group of volunteers who didn’t want to see them go the way of the typewriter and record album. The volunteers meticulously restored them; now they staff the towers during daylight hours so visitors can ooh and ahh at spectacular views of the Inland Empire. But one lookout doesn't shut down after dark. Morton Peak Fire Lookout, off State 38 about 10 miles east of Redlands, lets you book a sleepover at 4,624 feet. Accommodations are nothing fancy, just a bed and wraparound windows, but you’ll find no better stargazing in the Inland Empire. To watch the sun set and the lights in the valley flicker while the stars dazzle overhead is perhaps rivaled only by watching the sunrise to the east the following morning. Plus you have the place to yourself; the volunteers leave at 5 p.m. You have to bring in your own water and food, but the solitude is worth it. Overnight stays are available mid-April through mid-November. Contact Big Bear Lake Resort Association to make reservations.
