Bill would save lookout in Glacier Peak Wilderness

DARRINGTON — U.S. Rep. Rick Larsen, D-Wash., plans to introduce legislation Wednesday aimed at halting the removal of the historic Green Mountain fire lookout in the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

“The lookout is an integral part of the Glacier Peak Wilderness, important for both recreation and the region’s history,” Larsen said Tuesday by phone from Washington, D.C. “The message of this bill is simple: The Green Mountain lookout stays on Green Mountain.”

Earlier this year the U.S. District Court in Seattle ordered the lookout removed after Montana-based Wilderness Watch successfully sued the Forest Service for using a helicopter to repair it, a violation of the federal Wilderness Act. The Forest Service maintained that the lookout’s historical significance made it an allowable project in the wilderness. The lawsuit is still in the courts, pending an appeal by the Department of Justice.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

Larsen’s proposed Green Mountain Lookout Heritage Protection Act would amend the Washington State Wilderness Act of 1984, allowing for the operation and maintenance of the lookout and preventing the Forest Service from tearing it down and carting it away.

“I believe strongly in preserving our environment, and I have been a leader in the fight to protect wilderness in the Wild Sky (Wilderness), the Skagit River Valley and in the San Juan Islands,” Larsen said. “It’s as important to me to save the lookout as it was to save the Wild Sky. Folks who live in Montana may not understand our efforts here to preserve federal land.”

George Nickas, director of Wilderness Watch, said Larsen’s bill has the potential to set a bad precedent, an effort that deserves national attention.

“The Wilderness Act was established for the permanent good of the whole people,” Nickas said. “When members of Congress pick away at it, the idea that these lands are set aside for future generations begins to ring hollow.”

Larsen said the position taken by Wilderness Watch fails to take into account the spirit of the law.

Chris Moore, field director of the Washington Trust for Historic Preservation, agrees.

“As an organization, we believe the lookout enhances the Glacier Peak Wilderness,” Moore said.

The Green Mountain lookout is one of the few surviving fire lookouts in the West, Larsen said. The lookout was built in the summer of 1933, when a Civilian Conservation Corps crew climbed 6,500-foot Green Mountain in the North Cascade Range east of Darrington. Along with its use as a key fire lookout in the logging heyday, Green Mountain also was an early warning station for aerial attacks during World War II. The lookout is on national and state registers of historic places.

Elected officials including Sens. Patty Murray and Maria Cantwell, the Snohomish County Council and the Darrington Town Council and organizations such as the Darrington Historical Society, many recreational groups, the Forest Fire Lookout Association and state and national Trusts for Historic Preservation support the maintenance of the lookout, Larsen said.

“Wilderness Watch’s lawsuit wasted a lot of people’s time and money,” said Scott Morris, historical society vice president, “and it’s time for Congress to step in and allow us to move on to more important things. The lookout won’t last forever. Just let it be.”

The fire lookout on Green Mountain is one of only 15 left from North Bend to the Canadian border, Morris said. That’s 15 of 90 that were built in the 1930s, he said.

“I am not speaking for the historical society or people in Darrington when I say this, but I love the Wilderness Act,” Morris said. “The lawsuit brought by Wilderness Watch is the kind of thing that (ticks) people off over a non-issue. Nickas was the one who started this whole thing, and he is the one who has set the bad precedent.”

Gale Fiege: 425-339-3427; gfiege@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Police Cmdr. Scott King answers questions about the Flock Safety license plate camera system on Thursday, June 5, 2025 in Mountlake Terrace, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Mountlake Terrace approves Flock camera system after public pushback

The council approved the $54,000 license plate camera system agreement by a vote of 5-2.

Cascadia College Earth and Environmental Sciences Professor Midori Sakura looks in the surrounding trees for wildlife at the North Creek Wetlands on Wednesday, June 4, 2025 in Bothell, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Cascadia College ecology students teach about the importance of wetlands

To wrap up the term, students took family and friends on a guided tour of the North Creek wetlands.

Community members gather for the dedication of the Oso Landslide Memorial following the ten-year remembrance of the slide on Friday, March 22, 2024, at the Oso Landslide Memorial in Oso, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
The Daily Herald garners 6 awards from regional journalism competition

The awards recognize the best in journalism from media outlets across Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington.

Edmonds Mayor Mike Rosen goes through an informational slideshow about the current budget situation in Edmonds during a roundtable event at the Edmonds Waterfront Center on Monday, April 7, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Edmonds mayor recommends $19M levy lid lift for November

The city’s biennial budget assumed a $6 million levy lid lift. The final levy amount is up to the City Council.

A firefighting helicopter carries a bucket of water from a nearby river to the Bolt Creek Fire on Saturday, Sep. 10, 2022, on U.S. 2 near Index, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
How Snohomish County property owners can prepare for wildfire season

Clean your roofs, gutters and flammable material while completing a 5-foot-buffer around your house.

(City of Everett)
Everett’s possible new stadium has a possible price tag

City staff said a stadium could be built for $82 million, lower than previous estimates. Bonds and private investment would pay for most of it.

Jennifer Humelo, right, hugs Art Cass outside of Full Life Care Snohomish County on Wednesday, May 28, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘I’ll lose everything’: Snohomish County’s only adult day health center to close

Full Life Care in Everett, which supports adults with disabilities, will shut its doors July 19 due to state funding challenges.

Herald staff photo by Michael O'Leary 070807
DREAMLINER - The first Boeing 787 is swarmed by the crowd attending the roll out of the plane in on July 8, 2007 at the Boeing assembly facility in Everett.
Plane in Air India crash tragedy was built in Everett

The Boeing 787 Dreamliner in the crash that killed more than 200 people was shipped from Everett to Air India in 2014.

Photo courtesy of Kristi Nebel
Folk duo Steve and Kristi Nebel will be among the musical acts performing at the Edmonds Arts Festival, which takes place Friday through Sunday.
Photo courtesy of Kristi Nebel
Folk duo Steve and Kristi Nebel will be among the musical acts performing at the Edmonds Arts Festival, which takes place Friday through Sunday.
Coming events in Snohomish County

Send calendar submissions for print and online to features@heraldnet.com. To ensure your… Continue reading

Everett council approves another $4.8M in stadium spending

The money will pay for more detailed design work and initial costs related to acquiring the land needed to build the project.

The Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction faces a lawsuit from a former employee alleging wrongful termination. (Photo by Bill Lucia/Washington State Standard)
Ex-Washington state worker claims she was fired over school board vote on trans athletes

Darby Kaikkonen has sued the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction and Superintendent Chris Reykdal, alleging retaliation and wrongful termination.

Traffic moves north and south along I-5 through Everett on Tuesday, Aug. 29, 2023. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Snohomish County saw increase in traffic deaths in 2024

Even though fatalities fell statewide, 64 people died in Snohomish County traffic incidents in 2024, the most in nine years.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.