Medicine Point Lookout
4Heads up4 fires, nearest 26 mi
- Right now
- Nobody has saidNo season, no closure, no bookings to read
- Sites
- 1All of them booked ahead
The place
the agency’s own description · what’s there · 13 notices
In the agency’s own words
Medicine Point Lookout is a historic tower located on Medicine Point, west of Sula. It has been restored to reflect a lookout of the 1940s, including the stove, furniture, dishes and other small touches. It offers a unique chance for visitors to camp on a mountain peak, near the scenic Bitterroot River in a rustic, old-time setting, while having the enjoyment of recreating on public lands. The tower provides spectacular views of the surrounding western Montana wilderness. Keep reading
Recreation
An extensive trail system exists in the area, including several loop trails for hiking, backpacking and horseback riding. Hitching racks are available at the base of the tower for equestrian campers' needs. Road and trail conditions are unpredictable, as weather changes quickly in the area. For best results, consult the ranger district prior to travel. Aside from hiking and horseback riding, the area is replete with wildlife and offers scenic views. A lookout journal is kept inside, providing instructions of what to do in case of emergency or a storm. Danger from lightning is largely abated due to a lightning rod implanted at the structure.
Facilities
Medicine Point Lookout is a historic "L4" lookout located on Medicine Point, west of the Bitterrot Valley. The lookout is one room cabin with a bed platform suitable for two people. Bedding is not provided. The lookout can accomidate up to four people. Others are welcome to tent camp in the area. The lookout measures 14ft.X14ft. with a 30 inch catwalk around the outside. There is wood stove for heat. You may have to saw your own wood from dead and down material found nearby. A bow saw and ax are provided. A two burner propane campstove and lanterns are provided. Propane is not provided, you will need to bring your own propane canisters . Basic eating and cooking utensils are provided. There is no water available near the lookout so please bring your own water . An outdoor toilet serves the lookout. You will need to provide your own toilet paper . The lookout is built on a 10 foot tall tower, with narrow steps and catwalk. This may pose a hazard for children and pets. Guests are responsible for their own safety. Remember, guests will need to bring their own water for drinking, cooking and cleaning purposes, as well as propane fuel canisters for cooking and lighting. Guests are also responsible for their own bedding, towels, soap, toilet paper and garbage bags. The facility does not provide trash receptacles; all garbage must be carried out, and the tower must be cleaned by guests prior to leaving. Do not leave anything you bring, even if you think it will benefit other renters. The tower is accessed by a somewhat difficult 3.5-mile hike from the parking area with a 2,000 foot elevation gain. Snowmobiles and other off-road vehicles are not allowed on the trail, however, horses and other livestock are welcome. Guests are responsible for their own travel arrangements and safety, and must bring several of their own amenities.
Natural Features
The tower is poised between the east and west forks of the Bitterroot River at an elevation of 8,409 feet. It offers beautiful views of the Bitterroot Mountains, as well as a vista of the southern Bitterroot Valley to the east. On clear nights the lights of Hamilton can be seen from the tower. The Bitterroot forest is home to many species of wildlife, from mule deer, whitetail deer, elk, bighorn sheep, mountain goats, black bear, mountain lions and moose to many varieties of smaller animals and birds.
What the agency tells you
Drinking water is not available. Bring your own drinking water.
Bring propane canisters for stove and lantern.
Hay for stock must be certified weed free.
Everything else this campground posts · 10
All garbage and food must be packed out. Please bring garbage bags.
Bring your own bedding.
The historic L-4 cabin sits on top of a 10 foot tall tower, with narrow steps and catwalk. This may pose a hazard for children and pets. Guests are responsible for their own safety.
No ATV's or OHV's are allowed on the trail.
Some cleaning supplies are provided but you should plan to bring your own in case they are not available during your stay. Please help keep the cabin clean.
This facility is located in a remote area; before making a reservation, become aware of bear, water and weather safety
Don't Move Firewood: Prevent the spread of tree-killing pests by obtaining firewood near your destination and burning it on-site. For more information visit dontmovefirewood.org.
Learn more about the Bitterroot National Forest
Check in time is 2:00 PM; Check out time is 12:00 PM
The lookout remains locked; a week before your scheduled arrival, contact the Darby-Sula Ranger District during office hours (Mon-Fri 8:00 a.m to 4:30 p.m.) to obtain a key code
Tents and rigs
- Sites
- 1 · 1 cabin
- Hookups
- None
- Accessible sites
- None listed
- Pets
- Not allowed
Facilities
- Toilets
- Yes, the record doesn't say what kind
- “An outdoor toilet serves the lookout.”
- Drinking water
- None, bring your own
- “…and cooking utensils are provided. There is no water available near the lookout so please bring your own…”
Around the campground
- On the water
- River
- Hiking
- Historic site
- Horseback riding
- Lookout Tower
- Wildlife viewing
No reading yet, book on recreation.gov
Every site here is reservable, and the record lists none held back for anyone who drives up.
No availability snapshot inside the last 36 hours, so this page draws nothing rather than ageing a reading into fiction.
Watch for a cancellation
Full? Watch it.
One email when a night opens, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We read recreation.gov once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time a site in your window is free for the nights you asked for.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
Tell me when the season opens
Watch for the season to open
One email when the season goes on sale, plus More Than Just Parks dispatches. Unsubscribe any time.
We check once an hour, at 40 minutes past, and write the first time the agency has that season on sale.
Scanners that check every few minutes exist, and most of them charge. This one is free, it reads the same calendar, and it won’t always be first.
We make nothing when you book. The link goes straight to the government.
Every line of the receipt · 12
What you actually pay
Who keeps the booking fee
The agency’s own policy text says the reservation fee and the cancellation processing fee are “retained by the reservation service contractor”, and that a campground concessionaire will decline to refund them because “they did not receive these fees”. Recreation.gov is run under contract by Booz Allen Hamilton. What share of your booking fee the contractor keeps isn’t published in any federal dataset we can read, so we print no number for it. Our reporting on the contract →
How we know this receipt · 5
rules read Sep 9, 2026 · rates Oct 1, 2026 · How we know all this
The sites
1 sites · the site map
All 1 sites
Toilet distances are OpenStreetMap’s, measured for 1 of the 1 sites listed. A site with no reading is unknown, never far.
The price is derived by CAMPANAC, not published per site: the per-night rate this campground publishes for each site’s own site type. 1 of the 1 sites listed carry one, and a site whose type has no published rate sits out of the price rather than being called free.
| AREA MEDICINE POINT LOOKOUT | 01 | cabin nonelectric | 1,445 ftTumble Creek | 200 ft | $30 |
Getting there
the map and the coordinate · the agency’s directions · the phone number
Where it is
Crazy Creek CampgroundBitterroot National Forest · 2.0 miWarm Springs CampgroundBitterroot National Forest · 4.2 mi
Twogood CabinBitterroot National Forest · 4.7 mi
Spring GulchBitterroot National Forest · 5.5 mi
Sam Billings Memorial CampgroundBitterroot National Forest · 6.8 mi
Indian Trees CampgroundBitterroot National Forest · 8.3 miFrom Missoula, Montana, travel south on Highway 93 to Laird Creek Road/Forest Service Road 370, which is approximately 34 miles south of Hamilton. Turn right and continue about 4 miles to Bear Creek Saddle. At Bear Creek Saddle, turn north onto Forest Service Road 5731 and continue 2 miles to the trailhead. The trail to the tower is approximately 3.5 miles and is quite steep along some portions, gaining 2,000 feet of elevation.
The weather
the next four days
Next four days, and the thirty-year normal
Forecast
NWS forecast for Sula, MT
The land, and who answers for it
what threatens it · who answers for it
What threatens this place
You’re camping on ground somebody wants. We track the threats and the comment deadlines.
Who answers for this land
Medicine Point Lookout is in Montana’s 1st congressional district. Its representative, Ryan Zinke (R), votes on the laws that decide what happens to this land. Public-lands grade so far: F. See every public-lands vote →