I put my wilderness fire lookout on lockdown today. No more visitations by members of the public.

[Bo Zarts]

Again, like in 2023, I must be extremely vague about my location. Given the tragedy last Sunday in Coeur d’Alene and events today (7/4) in the vicinity of the lookout, I think you will understand.

I opened up the lookout on July 1. Usually during the July 4 holiday week there are some ATV riders that come up the hell-rough road to the tower. But none came until today (a rather cool, cloudy day which turned to rain, drizzle, and fog). Shortly after noon two side-by-sides (RZRs) and a quad came up. A man and woman (50-ish) in each RZR, and a teenage boy on the quad. More about them later.

During the hour or so preceding their arrival in the vicinity of the lookout, there were about eight concussive explosions from places well below me and maybe within three miles. Not fireworks. I thought: C-4 or 82mm mortars, harkening back to my Vietnam days. But then four more explosions seemed to be getting closer, and coming from the general direction of the road leading up to the lookout. Then I saw the three ATVs .. then they stopped at the saddle between my peak and the next over. Then there was a much louder explosion from the direction of the ATVs.

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the national forest below me, was sporadic gunfire of all descriptions. But that is the nature of July 4 in the woods in the wild west.

Not longer after that last explosion, I saw the ATVs start moving again. I knew that they would be on the peak, below my 30’ lookout, in about six minutes. I didn’t need to lockdown because I stay lock-downed.

I watched as they parked and shutdown the ATVs. One male RZR driver had on a red hat that said “I.C.E.” I shit you not. What kind of sadistic fucking joke was THAT? Or was it a joke? He had a handgun in a chest-carry. The other male RZR driver had a MAGA hat, but no visible weapons.

One of the women passengers got out of the ATV and walked towards the stairs to the tower. I then went out on the catwalk and greeted her .. pleasantly. She asked if they could come up and visit the lookout.

At that point, I got to use a concocted story that two other lookouts and I had discussed last night. “I am sorry, but recent tragic events in Coeur d’Alene have necessitated changes in security procedures at remote locations like this. I’m sure that you understand. The lookout is closed to all visitors and, beyond that I am not authorized to discuss any security arrangements.”

Yes, she said. (Gunfire in distance). Things like that, I said.

“AND PEOPLE ARE EVEN EXPLODING SEMTEX,” she says. Who the fuck said anything about Semtex? How did she extract that term out of what we had discussed so far? Semtex is not C-4, but it is similar. And Semtex is preferred by terrorists because it is hard to trace.

I’m fairly sure that this was all innocuous, including the fucking ICE hat. But maybe it wasn’t. All aspects of this event were documented and reported.

I’m not paranoid. But I am.

Bo Zarts