Reakes Portfolio

Spring Studio - Professor Andrea Dutto

The L-4 tower on Bear Mountain has a history dating back to 1951. Construction began with both an air drop as well as a hauling of material via mule. Lookouts have slowly begun to be phased out with more and more being decommissioned every year. Given the nature of Bear Mountain still being maintained and occupied every summer the typology cannot change drastically. 

Throughout all four phases of the project you will see a progression and meticulous process of adjusting the typology of fire lookouts and eventually designing a structure that fits the context and innovates on the typology. 

During Phase 1 we studied preexisting sites and fire lookouts to understand the complexity of the architectural typology. This phase of the project lasted roughly a month and a half and saw us deep diving into the historical data of Idaho forest fires, forest service articles, and reaching out to people who may have been lookouts in the past. 

Following the research, we were tasked with building a 1/4-inch scale model (as seen above) of our individual fire lookouts as they existed or as they once existed. This part of the project made me understand the interworking's of such simple structures that endure incredible hardship. 

Phase 2 is the part of the project where application of my research can be seen. The biggest influence on this phase followed after my brief interview of Steven Kalling.

Kalling has been a volunteer fire lookout since the 1990s and has been stationed on various lookouts but most of all he's been stationed on Bear Mountain in the 53-foot tower with an L-4 type cabin. His initial impressions on his first approach to the tower was that it felt like a Pagoda that you'd see somewhere in Asia. He also explained to me the layout of the cabin itself which directly influenced the Phase 1 model interior and the plan drawings. 

Following this discussion, I asked him what his biggest gripes were with the existing tower. To which he said that there was no easily accessible restroom space which forced him even in the dead of night to descend and ascend the treacherous interior climbing stairs. He also mentioned a lack of good storage space, the railings on the top catwalk were far too high and had been adjusted by the USFS some years ago. All of these changes and then some were implemented into the Phase 2 redesign. 

Throughout the design of Phase 2 I felt that it was a disingenuous departure to the natural beauty of the original tower prior to the USFS' abrupt changes in the late 2000's. This phase was not required of me, but I couldn't resist further redesigning the tower. In this final tower iteration, I kept the exterior climbing stairs as they're less steep and safer to ascend then the original interior climbing stairs. I also kept the reduced height of the catwalk railing and finally I restored the shutters to the original government specified length. 

Following the second redesign of the tower I felt it had reached its near perfect form. It was a solid balance of new and restored functionality. Phase 4 sees a growth around the tower itself and out towards the most prominent peak to the east nicknamed Grave peak where one of the older towers still resides although not currently operational. Bear Mountain Fire Lookout in this phase is transformed into a research center based around forest fire activity. The region this lookout is found in is one of the most active forest fire regions in all of Idaho. This makes it a perfect area to conduct field research on how to prevent fires and safeguard Idaho's greatest treasures, our forests. 

The design of the research center is meant to keep itself out of the way of the duties of the fire lookout who would still be operating in the 53-foot tower redesigned in Phase 2 and 3. The research center is found nestled along and in-between the trestle network that spans out towards Grave peak. Above the research center is a visitor deck for hikers that make their way to the peak of bear mountain it also holds braced solar panels that allow the research center to function without the need for significant generator usage. 

Another structure outside of the research center is a garage space that houses snowmobiles and ATV's and alongside the building is a helicopter pad for the delivery of supplies, materials, and researchers throughout the year.