Robinson Butte is located S of Hwy 140, just W of Brown Mountain (TR; jessbee TR), and just SW of Mt. McLoughlin. The LO on its summit is still in use during the summer but plays host to a lot of comm gear year-round. While this area is infested with snowmobiles in the winter, we had it to ourselves thanks to this being a weekday and the upper road to the LO being suffciently blocked by blowdown to turn away motorized machinery. FR 37 is still closed by snow but we were able to park where it junctions with Hwy 140 (room for 2-3 cars). The nearest SnoPark is 0.5 mi to the E - we could have parked there too and made our way XC back to FR 37. We went S on FR 37 over snow well-packed by snowmobiles,
past the Northfork Campground and over the N Fork of Little Butte Ck - the outlet from Fish Lake (the little building is a gaging station not an outhouse),
where we indulged in a spectral selfie.
We kept going on FR 37,
to where we turned right (W), at an unsigned junction, on to FR 37-150, which we followed all the way up to the LO. You can't see the LO from FR 37 but you can see the antennas (arrow) at the comm station next to the LO.
Evidence of snowmobiles diminished rapidly the further we got from FR 37 and we began to have more of a wilderness experience. Although we wore our snowshoes almost the whole day, the snow - even absent compaction by snowmobiles - has settled a lot between 4,000' and 6,000' and we could easily have done without them. Erosion and compaction of the snowpack is starting to pick up as we continue to get wet - but now warmer - storms.
About half way along FR 37-150 to the LO, we came to the only sign pointing the way.
Beyond here, snow cover and blowdown had conspired to block snowmobiles, so ours were the first tracks on the snow below the LO.
Robinson Butte was first established as a fire lookout site in 1913, according to the History of the Rogue River National Forest, and the first tower was a 20-foot high pole structure built in 1933. The present 53' tower was originally built in 1963 on Blue Rock overlooking the Sky Lakes Wilderness. The tower was transferred to Robinson Butte in 1974. It's now on the National Historic Lookout Register.
You can't actually access the cab in winter, but you can climb the stairs to just below it,
where you can look down some 50',
or out to Mt. McLoughlin to the N.
The LO shares the summit with a comm station, which had melted its snow cover into a semblance of a Roman aqueduct.
Lucky for us, bluebird conditions persisted until we had finished both visiting the LO and eating our snack. But within ten minutes of our start back, the band of clouds ahead of the next storm was overhead and all became gray jay gloom. Sigh.
Still, a good hike (8.1 mi RT, 1200' EG) to an historic lookout, with some good views while it was still bluebird. Also a useful check on snow conditions below 6000'. Higher up (like on Mt. McLoughlin), there are still areas of soft snow where snowshoes are a blessing and still higher (8000'+) there is wind slab and snow over ice that really calls for crampons.
