PIKE NATIONAL FOREST — While historic fire lookouts dot the Colorado landscape, advancing technology has meant fewer of these structures are staffed than in the past; let's meet one of the state's only full-time lookouts.
Situated at the summit of Devil's Head in the Rampart Range, the Devil's Head lookout tower rests at 9,748 feet of elevation; according to the fire lookout staffing the structure, Ashley Farinacci - Silfies, it's one of two staffed fire lookouts in the state in 2024.
The site is historically significant for its long association with conservation efforts of the US Forest Service in Colorado. In 1907 the newly created Forest Service planned seven principal lookouts along the Front Range of the Rockies between New Mexico and Wyoming. Devil's Head was selected to be the location of one of these lookouts.... The site has been in continuous use since 1912 and is the last full time lookout in Colorado.
According to the Forest Service, following a disaster in 1910, thousands of fire lookouts were constructed across the country and hundreds were actively staffed; near the end of the 1930s, the Forest Service estimated that there were more than 5,000 active fire lookouts.
As technology continued to march forward, that number decreased significantly.
"Today, due to the development of infra-red detection devices and the deployment of airplanes and helicopters, the lookout system is still utilized but to a much lesser extent."
The historic structure atop Devil's Head is a 15x15 foot box surrounded on all sides by windows and a wrap-around-balcony, "I can see a hundred miles in every direction," stated Ashley.
The task of hunting smoke, spotting fires, and keeping the Pike National Forest safe is one that Ashley feels called towards; she's been the lookout at Devil's Head for going on five years now.
"This is the thing that I want to do long term, I feel drawn to the mission of the tower and the mission of the Forest Service; I love looking for smoke, it's like playing Where's Waldo! It's a really wonderful job and I hope to do it for as many years as I can."
Fire Lookout: How it all started
Fire Lookout: How it all started
Ashley and her husband, Trace Silfies, live at a cabin situated directly below the lookout from May through October; they share their space with two cats, Fiona and Fjord (who has his own Forest Service uniform).
Fire Lookout: Fjord the "Forest Service" cat
Ashley says a day at the lookout starts at 9:30; from then until she descends the steps back to her cabin in the evening, she's scanning her surroundings (through binoculars) for smoke every 15 minutes.
If she spots a plume, she utilizes an Osborne Firefinder paired with her in depth knowledge of the surrounding terrain/landmarks to pinpoint, within a quarter-of-a-mile, the origins of the smoke; she then relays this information to the appropriate fire departments/authorities to deal with the fire.
Fire Lookout: Hunting for smoke
The work at this fire lookout doesn't just revolve around looking; during the summer months, Ashley relayed that the Devil's Head trail (which leads up to the tower) is quite popular among hikers.
"We have a ton of visitors come up," said Ashley, "40,000 visitors a summer."
This inundation of outdoor enthusiasts has this fire lookout feeling that her job is split 50/50 between hunting for smoke, and talking with visitors about fire safety, fire prevention, and even the fire history in the Pike National Forest.
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Returning to an earlier topic, Ashley and Trace live directly below the lookout for the entirety of its operating season; this lifestyle comes with various challenges like having to hike everything (yes, everything) in and out.
Fire Lookout: Pack in and pack out
This "pack-in, pack-out" lifestyle was among the things that made the first two years working at the lookout challenging; however, now on year five, these two have settled into a pattern and feel quite at home on the mountain.
Fire Lookout: Life on the mountain
As a final note on the lifestyle of this fire lookout, while it could be said that any number of hikers regularly heading up to the lookout might constitute as "neighbors," there's one neighbor in particular that Ashley has formed a special bond with via "shining."
Ashley and her neighbor (living seven miles away) exchange reflections with large mirrors from one mountain to the next.
"One of the things I do in my free time is I shine my neighbor Jim, he lives seven miles away to my north. He shines me and it really makes my day knowing that somebody is up here thinking about me."
Fire lookout: Neighbors and reflections
You can find more historic fire lookout locations scattered across Colorado on the National Historic Lookout Register.
You can also rent select fire lookouts for overnight stays. For more information click here.
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