Some high-flying hummingbirds visit this feeder

We are right smack in the middle of fire season here in California, with at least one dangerous wildland fire burning uncomfortably close to Yosemite National Park. So I thought it was fitting to have a look at one of the Forest Service’s historic fire towers. These days, most of the towers have been abandoned or even turned into vacation rental properties. The Southern Sierra tower featured in this episode, Buck Rock, is currently staffed by volunteers from the Buck Rock Foundation (BRF).

This is another of my favorite episodes of California’s Gold, originally aired in 2002. I like to imagine what it might be like living in a fire tower, high above the beautiful forest, and completely alone for up to five days at a time. It takes a special sort of person to be able to do this job, and I’m not sure I could handle it… but sometimes I’d really love to try!

Travel with Huell to Sequoia National Forest to visit historic Buck Rock Fire Lookout. Established in the early 1900s,Buck Rock Lookout was one of the first fire detection locations in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. The current lookout building, constructed in 1923, is historically significant as a representation of the earliest live-in towers in California.

(Click on the linked image below to see the video.)