Montgomery County High Point Trip Report
Date: February 24, 2002
Author: Bob Schwab
one small area on county line in section 12-17N-3W (930+ ft)
From the intersection of Routes 75 and 234 near the town of Lynnville, proceed west on Route 234 for 2.3
miles to 1100 W Road. Turn right and drive north for 1 mile to 700 S Road, then turn left and drive west 1
mile to the county line, which is obvious by a wiggle (jog) in the road. Turn south into a driveway and ask
at the house (#11993) for permission to walk back along the county line into the pasture. The man I met
here gave me permission to enter, but didn't tell me his name. Walk south along the edge of the field to a
large tree on the fence line which separates a wooded area to the west from a bean field to the east.
The land slopes from east to west, and the fence represents the Boone/Montgomery county line. I actually
thought the highest land on the west side of the fence was about 30 feet south of the big tree, but this is
basically a liner; there is very little extension of the 930 foot contour into Montgomery county.
eight areas in sections 13/24/25-17N-3W (930+ feet)
From the intersection of Routes 75 and 234 near the town of Lynnville, drive west on Route 234 for 4.4
miles to 1050 E Road. This intersection is 0.8 mile west of the Montgomery/Hendricks county line.
Turn left and drive south for 0.5 mile to 900 S Road. Turn left and drive east for 0.2 mile. Watch for a slight rise
in the field to your north and park on the edge of the road near a tree with an aluminum pole stuck in the ground.
Area 2 is just 60 feet north of the road out in a muddy cornfield.
Continue east another 0.2 mile and find two more areas out in the field to the north. Area 3 is the larger
area that you see first, and area 4 is a bit farther north and much less distinct.
Return to your car and drive east to where the road jogs and park in the nice pull-off on the south side of the jog.
This jog marks the county line, and to the north and west is a large contour (area 5) in yet another cornfield.
The jog in the road has a spot elevation of 932 feet, and the ground right near a large tree appears to be at
least a foot or so higher than that. The jog area is the northern extension of a vast contour (Area 6) to your
south which runs along the county line for almost a mile. Hand-level checks revealed that area 5 has some
pretty high spots in it, but higher ground can be seen to the south in the middle of area 6 and near the
county line.
Drive back to the intersection of 900 S Road and 1050 E Road. Turn south and drive 0.25 mile to 925 S Road.
Turn left and follow this road as it angles southeast, then south, then turns abruptly east and ascends
a high section of area 6. I stopped right along the edge of the road and discovered that the highest spots
appeared to be just north and somewhat south of where the road cuts across the crest of this big area.
Continue east to where the road bends abruptly south. This is where the road meets and now follows the
county line. I found another possible high spot (inconclusive with hand-level sightings) somewhat north of
this bend, right along the county line.
Continue south on this road until it intersects with 1000 S Road. Turn right (west) and watch for a pull-off
in the field just after crossing a new culvert. To your north there is a noticeable rise in the cornfield.
This is area 7, and while the buildings shown on the topo maps are now gone, you can still see obvious traces
in the plowed ground of the old gravel driveway. It feels pretty high on top, but hand-level sightings
suggest that the spots mentioned in area 6 are higher.
Return to your car and drive west on 1000 S Road to 1050 E Road. Turn left and drive south for 0.7 mile
to a house to the west that sits on an obvious hill. This is the home of Phyllis Mason (RR 2, Box 142) and
her house and outbuildings sit on area 8. She was sleeping when I stopped in, but her guests gave me
permission to briefly survey their yard.
Continue south on 1050 E Road and turn left on 1100 S Road. Drive east 0.4 mile and watch for a house
and farm on the left (RR 2, Box 145). This is the farm of Don Barker, and he owns the entire section here
that includes area 9. Don was very interested in what I was doing, and volunteered to drive me out in the
middle of his fields to check some of the highest spots of this large area. We drove north on a farm lane that
crossed one very high area near where a pipeline cuts through his field. Hand level checks indicated this was
indeed a high spot, but I also detected another high area off to the northeast, right near the county line and a
forested area. Since the bean field over there was even muddier than the cornfield we were in, I asked Don
for permission to walk out there from the north, and he agreed.
I returned to my car, drove up 1050 E Road to 1000 S Road, and drove east for 0.75 mile and parked in a
pull-off near a jog in the road next to some gas transmission valves. There is an abandoned barn off to the west,
but I hiked due south along the edge of the bean field. At the southern edge of a wooded area to the east
(in Hendricks County), I could see a slight rise in the woods which represents a 940 foot contour.
The contour doesn't quite extend west far enough to get into Montgomery county, but I'm convinced that the
land right here next to the county line is about 938 - 939 feet. I found a small rise about 50 feet west of the
woods/county line that I believe is the true high spot of the county at
(39° 53.386' N , 86° 41.743' W).
From here I could sight back to where I had checked the field near the pipeline, and I could also check the
high spots I had visited in areas 6 and 7. None were as high, although the area near the pipeline is very close.
Visitors to this county must come at a time when you can clearly see the profile of the land in these fields.
Once crops are planted, you will not be able to judge where the highest spots are located.