Kiowa Mountain

Posted bywringmasterPosted inUncategorized
Such a beautiful fire lookout tower on a lovely summit free of all the usual communications infrastructure that often clutters up such summits. Four stars for this wonderful, easy hike.

What a treat to find such a beautiful fire lookout tower on a summit with no communications infrastructure!

24 MAY 2025 W5N/OT-014

A Summits On The Air Classic!
Elevation:9,734′
Route: Dirt road
Hike Distance: 1.2 miles round trip
Elevation Gain: 600′
Navigation: Easy
Steepness: Gentle
Vehicle: High clearance suggested
Road: Good dirt road*
Cell Coverage: Good Verizon
*Dry weather only, A little rough on the short piece of FS Road 110A

What a surprise treat this summit turned out to be! I wasn’t even going to activate anything on this Memorial Weekend Saturday when at the last moment my chores evaporated and Cassie KG6MZR said “Go!”

This was my 200th SOTA unique activation and Kiowa was a fitting prize.

As Don AC7P mentioned in SOTA Data, the approach drive from the south is a better road – especially if conditions are less than dry. This road was a little bumpy but an intrepid passenger car driver should have no trouble with everything up until the last bit – FS Road 110a – and even that wasn’t too bad until the end. The gate was locked and it looks like it has been for quite a while. Here is my driving route off of State Road 111

The hiking route is a delightful, shady and easy walk though the Carson National Forest with glimpses out across the forested Tusas and Ortega Mountains. Even if the gate had been open, I would have taken this delightful stroll.

This summit is unusual for the fact that there is a reasonably well-preserved forest service fire lookout tower on this forested summit, but not any other communications infrastructure that usually attends such a juicy hilltop. Or at least there is very little of the usual junk. There was a small building at the base that housed what I am guessing is a single repeater. I did hear some audio chatter coming from within the building. But with no big microwave junk, this peak has a lost-in-time vibe. The tower is one of the tallest, if not the tallest, I’ve ever seen. It is a little spooky to climb. I’d suggest a firm grip on the handrails as some of the plank steps seem pretty weathered. There was an inspection tag from 2023 at the bottom that gave the structure a satisfactory grade. The very top trapdoor into the lookout itself was locked.

The tower makes a great place to hang a high end of an antenna.

Radio conditions were somewhat better then they have been. Chris F4WBN was an honest-to-God 57 on the KX2.

There was a wonderful place to set up in front of the ranger’s cabin. It would make a good overnight camp.
Wider view of the station.
“King Kiowa” presides over the summit.
Terrific view to the northeast of San Antonia and up into the Colorado Sangre de Christo. Click to enlarge.
Some of the peaks to the northeast.
Perhaps the most interesting example of a forest service fire lookout tower I have ever seen.
Obligatory benchmark photo.
Locked gate and a good example of what the end of FS Road 110A looks like. Bumpy but passible.

Here are my SOTA summit ratings

Here are some cool links to Summits on the Air (SOTA)

KG6MZS Summit Index by Year

Leave a comment

Published by wringmaster

I'm a graphic artist in the movie business. When I was a kid I got interested in astronomy. When it would get too cloudy to observe the heavens, my buddy and I would sit at the VFO of his Hallicrafters S 38c like safe crackers trying to coax faraway signals out of that humble radio. My love of astronomy and radio survive to this day fifty+ years later.

Leave a comment