Twin Sisters Lookout

Rocky Mountain National Park

Elevation: 11428

Status: Removed

Original Year Built: 1914

Original replaced: 1950 (Steamboat Pilot, 6/9/1950)

Second tower blew down: 1951 (Greeley Daily Tribune 3/28/1951)

Rebuilt: 1953

Year Removed: 1976

Original Structure Type: 7' X 7' Wood-frame Groundhouse

Rebuilt Structure Type: Steel Tower with Airport-control-tower-type Cab

Google Map

Twin Sisters was the first lookout in Rocky Mountain National Park. The original wood-frame groundhouse was constructed by the U.S. Forest Service on the northernmost, slightly lower of the two peaks which make up the north sister. The National Park Service took over the lookout in 1925 and built a steel tower with an airport-control-tower-type cab. Remnants of cable supports can still be found. The stone house below the north outcrop was originally used as housing for the fire guard. It is on the National Register of Historic Places and is now used to house radio equipment. The views from the top are outstanding, as this was undoubtedly a very strategic location for a fire lookout.

How to get there: From Estes Park, head south on CO 7 to the Twin Sisters trailhead, on the east side of the road, across from Lily Lake. From the parking area, hike up the road a short ways (this road may be open in summer) to a sign and the beginning of the trail. It is a 4.3 mile pack to the top, with an elevation gain of ~2300 feet.

Visit the Former Fire Lookout Site Register entry for Twin Sisters.

See also Forest Fire Lookout Towers of the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forests and Rocky Mountain National Park.

NPS

Stone house residence, 1925

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