BALD MOUNTAIN
Blaine County - Sawtooth National Forest - 4N-17E-27
1921: The first, a wooden structure, built. (U-Administrative Sites, Sawtooth National Forest files)
June 1940: Civilian Conservation Corps enrollees began construction of a new lookout structure.
1941: The new building completed. The unique design included separate restroom facilities for men and women, plus a lounge for the general public.
March 6, 1942: An area of 20 acres withdrawn from public domain for the administrative site. (U-Administrative Sites, Sawtooth National Forest files)
July 12, 1946: "Forest Ranger Glen Brado reports that Bob Hewitt is stationed at the lookout station on Baldy mountain where he will remain during the fire season." (The Times-News)
July 30, 1953: "It's getting so a fellow can't even bake his bread in peace, complained a sheepherder located up Parker gulch, a tributary of Elk Horn creek. It was Friday morning when the Lookout station on Baldy reported smoke in the Parker gulch vicinity to the Ketchum ranger station.
Glen Brado sent out men immediately to check. When they reached the spot the sheepherder was just taking his sour-dough bread out of the ashes. And everyone knows how delicious sourdough bread cooked in a dutch oven in smoldering ashes tastes!" ( The Nyssa Gate City Journal)
August 11, 1954: "Mr. and Mrs. Howard Sluder of Idaho Falls are convinced now that Baldy Mountain, Sun Valley's famous ski retreat, should be skied down -- not walked.
Mr. and Mrs. Sluder, who manned the Baldy Mountain Forest Service lookout station for a summer, three years ago, went up to the lookout last weekend to visit friends, Mr. and Mrs. Arnold Zenk, teachers in the local school system. Zenk, principal of the Central Intermediate school, is operating the lookout station this summer.
The Sluders went part way up the mountain by lift and then climbed from the Round House to the top where the lookout is located." (The Post-Register)
mid-1990's: The lookout discontinued as a fire detection station. However, continues as a communications facility.