Santa Margarita (LO site), San Diego County, California,

Elevation = 3090 ft.

Located in Cleveland National Forest
The concrete footings are all that remain of the Santa Margarita Lookout. The original fire lookout tower was built by the CCC in 1935. This was later replaced by a new lookout tower and cabin in 1965. In 1986, the tower and cabin were both burned in a wildfire. On March 2, 1988 the burnt tower was destroyed in a collision with a Marine Corps CH-46E helicopter. The lookout tower was badly damaged as a result and was promptly removed. The four corner blocks were for the 30 foot steel tower erected in 1965. The cab was 16 foot square. Photo taken June 24, 2019.
The northwest corner post shows the date of construction. No benchmarks were placed at the lookout.
The last third of a mile of the road up to the lookout site is badly eroded and not drivable by normal vehicles. Tire tracks show that some Jeeps or ATV's are able to make it up.