Thanks for your trip report WanderingEng. A thought about bushwhacking BRSF - there are areas that look okay from a little distance but once you step in whoa you're in a swamp jumping from hummock to hummock or even worse an actual deep bog capable of trapping you underwater. Hopefully your topo map would indicate these areas. There are some wonderful higher ground areas in BRSF though, some the terrain is highly varied making for awesome views. One place from a ridge you look down across a half mile pot hole.

Years ago there was a lookout tower near dam 17 SW of hwy54 & n settlement road but last time I looked it was down. Maybe the tower got rebuilt I haven't been BRSF for over 3 yrs.

Edited to add that some of what I said above may apply to the adjacent county forest land rather than technically within the state forest, especially the bog, which is on the west side of the forest. I am trying to remember the name of the road coming down from hw54, I am getting Wildcat/Spangler Rd. When I looked down into the waters of that bog it blew my mind. The water was perfectly clear to see a jumble of (cedar?) logs dozens of feet deep. Scary and beautiful, like much of nature.