Lunch Peak Lookout

Show on map 208-263-5111. WEEKDAYS 8:00AM TO 4:30PM. CLOSED ON WEEKENDS. CANNOT ACCEPT OR CANCEL RESERVATIONS

1602 Ontario Street
SANDPOINT, ID 83864

Overview

Lunch Peak lookout offers breathtaking views of Cabinet Mountain Wilderness, the Selkirk Mountains and Lake Pend Oreille. Located in the Cabinet Mountains, 35 miles northeast of Sandpoint, Idaho, the lookout sits at 6,414 ft. Guests can enjoy easy access to Pend Oreille Divide Trail #67. The lookout is remote and rustic with no heat, furnishings, water or cooking facilities. This basic structure lets visitors experience the feeling of "roughing it" while enjoying the cozy shelter and incredible views of the mountains and valleys below.

Recreation

The Pend Oreille Divide Trail #67 starts just below the lookout and is suitable for hiking, horseback riding and mountain biking. It follows ridge lines for much of its length and offers great views in all directions. A nice day hike is out to Mt. Pend Oreille and back. 8 miles roundtrip.

Facilities

The 15'x15' cabin was remodeled in 2002 and sits atop a 15' high cinder block foundation. No water or heat is provided. The lookout has limited furnishings which include a sleeping platform, table and cabinet. A modern vault toilet is located at the Pend Oreille Divide trailhead, 300 feet away. The last four miles of the access road is rough in spots and high clearance vehicles are necessary.

Natural Features

The lookout is located northeast of Sandpoint, Idaho and Lake Pend Oreille at an elevation of 6,414 feet. Bear, deer, elk, and cougar are among the wildlife native to the area. Visitors are cautioned to be aware of and practice bear safety while staying at Lunch Peak Lookout.

Nearby Attractions

The closest convenience store and fuel is located in Hope, Idaho, approximately 20 miles or a one hour drive.

Charges & Cancellations

CLOSED 2021

Camp site features

Across 1 camp site:

Picnic table: all 1 sites
Pets allowed: all 1 sites
Largest party: 4 people

Directions

From Sandpoint take Hwy 200 east 12 miles to Trestle Creek Road; turn left onto Trestle Creek Road #275 and go 12 miles to Lunch Peak Road #1091; turn left onto Road 1091 and go 4 miles to the lookout.

Stay Limit

Check in from 3 PM, check out by 11 AM.

Reviews

8 reviews

5 stars

4 stars

3 stars

1 stars

Kristine A

Loop:Area Lunch Peak Lookout

Site:

Reviewed a month ago

The views are outstanding. Road is in good shape and easily assessible. The only lookout without mattresses. A popular location for hikers.

Joel K

Loop:Area Lunch Peak Lookout

Site:

Reviewed 3 months ago

We did a roadtrip visiting and stay in 7 different fire lookouts 7 days in a row, bringing our cat along with us. If you want more information about that, find me on YouTube @JoelKalich. Location and Access: This lookout isn't where you should go if you want utmost privacy, we had at least 10 visitors in the single Saturday night we stayed. The road to the lookout claimed to be closed as you left pavement, but when we drove past the closed sign, it wasn't actually closed. I would've appreciated a heads-up about this. The 15 miles off pavement was no problem for my lifted Volvo XC70, and would be no problem for a stock Subaru, or even a sedan if you're careful. The lookout: We had no issues getting into the lookout, the code worked well. It was clean and ready to use. The main table for cards and whatnot is a picnic table which isn't the most comfortable, but it was sturdy and did the trick. The toilet was downhill a ways, an easy walk, but a fairly lengthy one. The toilet itself was clean and well stocked with TP for us. Views were, of course, spectacular, though slightly dampened by smoke unfortunately.

Sharon D

Loop:Area Lunch Peak Lookout

Site:

Reviewed 3 months ago

Very fun. Amazing views. Hiking trails nearby. Huckleberries in August. Also smoke... but can't help that. We hiked to Peak Pend Oreille, Trestle Ridge, and started along Beetop-Roundtop trail until we felt like turning around. Make sure to call the ranger station ahead of time to get the door code.

Katy W

Loop:Area Lunch Peak Lookout

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Reviewed a year ago

Warmest lookout we’ve stayed in yet. The double pane windows and solid door made for a cozy night. Got pretty windy and had a little bit of rain during the night but didn’t damper the experience. Brought our two dogs so we decided to bunker down with mats and sleeping bags on the floor with them and used the platform as a storage setup. This is an easy to access lookout. Road was packed dirt with some switchbacks. That being said visitors did show up throughout the day until around 7-8pm. We actually arrived with about 5 cars at the parking area near the bathroom and a big group at the top. They left shortly after pictures and once we fixed the sign visitors didn’t walk up pass the gate.

Annabelle L

Loop:Area Lunch Peak Lookout

Site:

Reviewed a year ago

I was never given a door code so could not access the lookout. Very disappointing. We tried to get in contact with recreation.gov for hours. I have yet to receive even a refund for my stay... Do not book this place, it is a scam.

Kylie P

Loop:Area Lunch Peak Lookout

Site:

Reviewed a year ago

We have been to this lookout before and we always enjoy it. However, we were not informed the gate would be locked this time. It would be useful to have a gate key or combo lock to all ease of carrying equipment. Otherwise, we would have planned to just bring backpacking gear.

Availability

See the Camp Sites section below to find detailed booking availability.

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