4 Wheel Drive Zone

Wildfires have scorched acres of National Forests lands in the last several dry years. Manned fire lookouts can prevent such fires, which close OHV trails and limit forest access. The Forest Service has dismantled hundreds of lookouts despite their importance. Remaining lookout towers, intriguing structures perched in precarious and remote locations, have achieved cult status. Many have been refurbished into rustic cabins and campers rent them for overnight backcountry trips.

Plumas National Forest in northeastern California has two adjacent off-road trails with a total of 5 fire lookouts to visit. Not all the lookout towers still standing are currently in use. Advancements in fire detection systems and budgetary restrictions gradually eliminated the need to man all the towers. Plumas, like most other California National Forests, still staffs lookouts in the summer.

Thompson Peak Trail starts 9 miles south of Susanville. Grizzly Ridge Trail is located about 24 miles southwest of Susanville off Highway 89. Both trails are easy dirt roads with more difficult spur trails leading up to the towers. These are just two of the trails in the area that form a network of interesting 4-wheel drive roads for all difficulty levels.

One trail climbs to Thompson Peak and Red Rock Fire Lookouts. Both are staffed during fire season, and the watchman typically gives visitors permission to climb the towers and admire the view. Constructed in 1955, Red Rock Fire Lookout fell into disuse for a short time, but rejuvenated and reopened in 1984.

The Civilian Conservation Corps built Thompson Peak Lookout in about 1931. The square concrete building beside the lookout was added in 1950 as the seat of a three-legged iron tower. A radar dome topped the 34-foot tower and scanned the sky as part of the Early Warning Defense System, created during World War II. Throughout the war, a typical part of all lookouts’ jobs included scanning the horizon for Japanese aircraft.

Not only does the Thompson Peak site serve as a fire lookout, it is also a noted observation point for raptor migration and a popular hang-glider launch site. Falcons, bald eagles, and hang-gliders ride thermals, created by warm air rising from Honey Lake below, to gain altitude.

The other trail winds through the forest with spurt trails to Mt. Hough, Argentine Rock, and Smith Peak Fire Lookouts. It is also part of a designated Forest Service OHV trail network for ATVs and dirtbikes. Snowmobilers and cross-country skiers flock to this trail in winter. Lake Davis, at the road’s end, is stocked with trout and is popular with boaters, picnickers, and campers. Remains of the Walker Mine and mill are located at the mid-point of this drive. This extensive copper mining operation once employed 600 men and maintained a sizable town for its workers nearby. Beware; the huge tailings pond and mill remains have been declared a toxic site.

Established in about 1909, Mt. Hough (pronounced Huff) is one of the earliest lookouts erected in Plumas National Forest. Construction costs totaled only $303 at the time. Plumas replaced the original lookout tower with a new structure in 1916 and another in 1934. The forest finally built the three-story structure on the site today in 1986.

With its commercial phone line directly to “civilization,” this station acts as a hub for the forest’s other lookouts. With permission, visitors can normally climb the tower during the summer to see the expansive 360-degree views. Like the site of Thompson Peak Lookout, hang-gliders also launch from Mt. Hough. The spur to the lookout continues past the tower, descending steeply to the picturesque Crystal Lake. This rough, steep descent is difficult.

Argentine Rock Fire Lookout is 10 miles from the turn-off to Mt. Hough Lookout. The forest constructed this now-abandoned structure in 1934. Budget cutbacks and the use of fixed-wing aircraft to spot wildfires eliminated the need to staff this lookout. Vandalism and neglect have made the structure unsafe.

At Smith Peak Fire Lookout, you can look back over Grizzly Ridge and overlook Lake Davis. The Smith Peak site was initially used only as an emergency vantage point. Only the most rugged watchmen manned the rock crest before the forest constructed the current structure in 1935. Forest service staff welcomes visitors in the summer between 9:30 a.m. and 6:00 p.m.

Located across the harbour from the Sydney Opera House and adjacent to Circular Quay, the city’s transport hub, today’s The Rocks is a popular tourist area of museums, cobbled streets, picturesque buildings, charming shops and a lively nightlife and dining scene. Forming one side of Sydney Cove, the Rocks stretches down from Circular Quay to Dawes Point under the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

Here on George Street you can find Sydney’s oldest house - Cadman’s Cottage that dates from around 1816. Once the home of John Cadman, it’s now the National Park Information Centre. In fact, George Street, the main Rocks thoroughfare, is the oldest street in the whole of Australia. It’s home to such interesting places as the Billich Gallery, the Old Police Station, the union Bond Store, the Vault Restaurant and the nearby Art Deco-styled Museum of Contemporary Art.

There’s much to see and do in The Rocks and the best place to start is The Rocks Discovery Museum.

Located in a restored 1850s sandstone warehouse, the Rocks Discovery Museum displays the story of The Rocks from the times before the settlers arrived all the way up to the present day.

These displays take the form of images and locally-found artefacts. The collection is interactive with history being brought to immediate life through the use of touch screens, and audio and visual presentations. You’ll learn the complete history of The Rocks including how life was for the hardy pioneers - the convicts, sailors, whalers and traders who forged this land into the great city of Sydney.

For the more energetic and those with a taste for Australia’s famous brews, there’s The Rocks Pub Tour. This early evening event involves a crawl around some of the area’s historic watering holes in the capable hands of a knowledgeable guide to bring history alive. The Rocks Pub Tour runs from 5.00pm to 6.45pm. and is a great way to explore the back streets of The Rocks and sample the lore and legend of some of Sydney’s best old pubs. It makes the perfect prelude to dinner or a start to a night on the town. Tours leave daily except public holidays from in front of Cadman’s Cottage.

A major landmark in The Rocks and one with superb Harbour views is the Sydney Observatory in the hillside Observatory Park. It houses the Museum of Astronomy and Public Observatory. The park is a great spot for a picnic under the trees.

The Rocks is also a great shopping spot especially for gifts, Australian souvenirs, fashions, Aboriginal art, and duty-free. George Street, Nurses Walk, the Argyle Centre and Playfair Street, are the best shopping areas.

So go and make The Rocks a part of your Sydney holiday and if you want to stay awhile, you’ll find The Rocks is also home to some of Sydney’s finest hotels such as the Park Hyatt, Orient, Glenmore, Observer, Mercantile, the Shangri La Hotel Sydney and the Russell Hotel Sydney.