There are many lookout towers in our national forests that are off-limits. However, there is one in Missouri that you really can climb and the view from the top of it is stellar.
I will admit that it's tempting and likely worth the climb, but you probably shouldn't adventure to the top of an old 100-foot fire lookout tower that I found in Missouri.
I've been to Columbia, Missouri maybe a million times in my life. Truth is I lived there for a period of time. But, I never knew there were epic bluffs and a creek in a park literally 5 minutes from the city until now.
I grew up in Missouri thinking it was just a state next to the Mississippi River. Boy, was I wrong. As it turns out, Missouri is also a 14,000 foot mountain in Colorado. They should teach this in school.