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https://www.npr.org/2022/07/10/ [login to see] /a-sunrise-trek-to-a-mountain-fire-tower
Talk About a View!
Talk About a View!
A sunrise trek to a mountain fire tower
Posted from npr.orgPosted in these groups: 
State of New York
Hiking
State of New York Hiking
Posted 2 y ago
Responses: 2
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PO1 William "Chip" Nagel
..."MANN: We live in a world where forest fires are a growing threat because of climate change. The fire towers here were built a century ago after over-logging led to wildfires that burned nearly a million acres. I break out onto open rock, into the wind, on the summit of Hurricane. Around me, the distant mountains are still dusk blue, topped in mist with deep shadows in the valleys. Up ahead, I see the tall metal spire with a little cabin on top. These structures aren't used anymore by fire spotters. There are better, more modern ways to spot and track blazes. But roughly half the Adirondack towers are still standing, and most are open to hikers.
I've climbed to the top of the fire tower, and you can hear the wind just crackling around me. It's fierce up here.
Fierce but warm - a summer wind rich with smells of pine and dusty rock. Looking from the tower window, the eastern sky glows brighter. And just after 5 a.m., the sun pops, cherry red on the horizon. The last darkness washes away as the mountains and forest are colored with rose light."
..."MANN: We live in a world where forest fires are a growing threat because of climate change. The fire towers here were built a century ago after over-logging led to wildfires that burned nearly a million acres. I break out onto open rock, into the wind, on the summit of Hurricane. Around me, the distant mountains are still dusk blue, topped in mist with deep shadows in the valleys. Up ahead, I see the tall metal spire with a little cabin on top. These structures aren't used anymore by fire spotters. There are better, more modern ways to spot and track blazes. But roughly half the Adirondack towers are still standing, and most are open to hikers.
I've climbed to the top of the fire tower, and you can hear the wind just crackling around me. It's fierce up here.
Fierce but warm - a summer wind rich with smells of pine and dusty rock. Looking from the tower window, the eastern sky glows brighter. And just after 5 a.m., the sun pops, cherry red on the horizon. The last darkness washes away as the mountains and forest are colored with rose light."
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