Mount Bickford Fire Tower

Map & elevation

A reusable trail line has not yet been verified for this outing. Any location pin shows the published location described above; it does not draw the hike or establish a navigable approach.

Getting there & parking

From Chetwynd head toward Prince George on Highway 97 for roughly 53 km. About 700 m after Fisher Creek bridge, take the second right-hand turn after the bridge onto Fisher Creek Forestry Road. At the 3 km sign, turn left at the fork, then left again onto the signed powerline-access road. The older guide places the route start on the right just beyond the road’s highest point. The last 2–3 km are steep and rough, require 4WD in the guide and can be difficult when wet. The road is radio-controlled; verify access before travelling and add walking distance if you stop below the upper trailhead.

Map position: 55.59965, -122.32785 · start point of published trip track (parking unverified). Embedded trip-map feature 'Untitled Route': first recorded coordinate [-122.327846, 55.599652]. Point extracted from the original public trip map. A track start is evidence of where recording began, not certification of parking, legal access, road suitability or the complete route.

On the trail

The older route begins by a yellow metal marker at the powerline clearing, crosses wet ground on a log crossing and follows flagging through a cutblock to the forest edge. From there, a seismic line climbs toward the lookout ridge. Those landmarks come from a June 2018 review. An April 2025 snowshoe attempt reported very little marking and turned back in poor snow, so expect to navigate independently rather than follow an assured maintained trail. The basic guide gives 5.8 km return and 458 m of climbing. Return on the same approach unless you have separately planned and verified the Horse Trail connection. Water is limited in the later report, and neither mobile reception nor the old tower should be a trip dependency.

Conditions & seasons

The summer route is distinct from a winter ascent. A snowshoe attempt on April 12, 2025 ended early in deteriorating snow; that report is not evidence of an established safe winter route.

These are dated research notes. Open the trip planner for current available weather and advisory feeds; no alert found does not establish that a trail or road is open.

Check weather & available updates →

Camping & overnight plans

A 2018 guide described an outhouse and shelter suitable for an overnight stop, but an April 2025 report questioned whether the lookout remains. Current shelter availability and overnight arrangements are unverified; do not plan on a roof or facilities.

Photos of Mount Bickford Fire Tower

A photograph with confirmed reuse permission has not yet been added to this guide.

Original photo galleries

These galleries stay on their photographers’ original websites.

• Bickford Fire Lookout approach — partial winter trip (opens original source) · Hiking Prince George