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Three Fingers Lookout: a still from my film

Boulder River Wilderness, Washington · October 2023 · Solo

Three Fingers Lookout

55.5 KM · 2 DAYS · 1,896 M

By bike and on foot to a fire lookout on a rock spire in 2 days.

Watch the film 9:16 · 600K views

At a glance

Where
Boulder River Wilderness, Washington
Distance
55.5 km (34.5 miles)
Days
2: a long day up, a morning down
Climbing
About 6,220 ft (1,896 m) up and 6,076 ft (1,852 m) down in all, by my GPS, almost all of it on Day 1
Difficulty
Hard. A long, steep day with a rough forest trail, a snowfield, exposed rock and three ladders at the top
Start and end
The Canyon Creek bridge on Forest Road 41
When I went
October 2023
Relief map of the Three Fingers Lookout route: 2 days drawn in red with numbered day starts, labelled Canyon Creek bridge and Three Fingers Lookout.
Day 1Day 2Highest 6,850 ft (2,088 m)

Elevation, start to finish: highest 6,850 ft (2,088 m), lowest 1,600 ft (488 m).

My GPS recording on a relief map. The numbers are where each day starts. The GPX files come with the guide.

Everything I made about it

The films

Photos

  • The Three Fingers and the glacier from Tin Can Gap, Day 1 at mile 16.3.
    The Three Fingers and the glacier from Tin Can Gap, Day 1 at mile 16.3.
  • Morning from the summit ridge, Day 2 at mile 0.7.
    Morning from the summit ridge, Day 2 at mile 0.7.
Sunset from inside the lookout, Day 1 at 6:26 p.m.
Sunset from inside the lookout, Day 1 at 6:26 p.m.

The guide · PDF + GPX files · 2027 season edition

Do it yourself

By bike and on foot to a fire lookout on a rock spire in 2 days.

  • Where things stand
  • Both days
  • My GPX files
  • Sleeping in the lookout
  • Getting there and the bike

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Look inside the guide

Free sample

Try Day 1 free

The whole Day 1, The Canyon Creek bridge to the Three Fingers Lookout page from the guide as a PDF, plus my camping packing list: the 42 things I carry, with a note on each. Both come by email. You'll also get my emails about new guides and trips, a few a year.

Gear on this trip

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What I carried in 2023

Filming kit

Music in this films

All music

What I'd take now

My current kit

Everything I use, in Tools

The Americas and New Zealand bundle

This guide is in The Americas and New Zealand Hiking Guide Pack: 36 guides for $39. Or all 62 guides for $59.

Short answers

How long is the hike to Three Fingers Lookout?
About 34.5 miles round trip by my GPS from the Canyon Creek bridge, where cars stop on Forest Road 41: about 18 of it on the closed road, which most people bike, and about 16 on the trail. The trail alone, from the trailhead at Tupso Pass, is about 15 miles round trip with about 4,200 ft of climbing.
Is Forest Road 41 open to Three Fingers?
Not in late 2026: a Forest Service order closes it to everyone, walkers and bikes too, from September 29 to December 31, 2026, for a timber sale, and the Forest Service hopes to reopen it for 2027. In a normal year cars stop at the Canyon Creek bridge, about 9 miles below the trailhead, and you bike or walk the rest.
Can you sleep in the Three Fingers Lookout?
Yes: it's free, first come, first served, with no reservations, and holds about 8 people. It fills up even midweek in summer, so bring a tent and plan to camp at Goat Flats if it's full.
Do you need a permit for Three Fingers Lookout?
No permit and no parking pass. The Boulder River Wilderness rules apply: no fires from Saddle Lake up, no bikes or drones in the wilderness, groups of 12 or fewer.
When is the best time to hike to Three Fingers Lookout?
Late July to late September is the usual snow-light window; I went in mid-October 2023 with fall colors and only a dusting of snow. Early and late in the season expect snow and ice near the top, and bring microspikes and an ice axe.
Is the Three Fingers Lookout hike dangerous?
The last half mile crosses a snowfield and exposed rock and climbs three ladders to the lookout, and there have been several rescues past Tin Can Gap. Go slow, keep three points of contact, and turn back at the gap if it's late, icy or stormy.

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