Gratiot County Highpoint Trip Report

five small areas (890+ ft)

Date: May 3, 2007
Author: Andy Hatzos

The highest points in Gratiot County are located in two separate areas along M-46. The areas are easy to reach from the US-127 corridor and are west of the twin cities of Alma and St. Louis.

Eastern areas: 27-12N-4W

There are three areas south of M-46, halfway between Bliss Road and Warner Road. To reach these areas, I visited address #8461, the home of Ron Hamp. Ron remembered a couple of other highpointers coming by in previous years and was happy to let me walk on his property to claim the points for myself.

The trail marked on the topo map manifests itself immediately behind Mr. Hamp's workshop, running east-west. The largest contour (area 1) is likely the highest of the three here. This is the contour furthest to the west. The highest ground is found on some slight rises directly behind the house. Following the path to the east, I passed the second contour (area 2). The highest ground associated with this area is found to the north of the trail, near a large pileup of logs and branches. As the trail turns to the south, I found the third contour (area 3) in a partial clearing. The gravel pit shown on the topo can be seen from here but there is no need to go that far down. There is a small grassy rise near the end of the partial clearing and I climbed to the top to claim the third and final of the eastern areas.

Overall, I wandered around behind Mr. Hamp's house and workshop for about 10-15 minutes, making sure that I touched the highest ground. Bob Schwab mentioned that finding Mr. Hamp at home was difficult; I found him at his workshop in the late afternoon on a weekday.

Western areas: 28-12N-4W

This area is located south of M-46, halfway between Warner Road and Osborn Road. There are two or three contours here, depending on how the map is interpreted, but only the largest contour matters. This contour -- the one furthest to the east -- sits directly over the house at address #9575. It is obvious that this area has been altered a bit and the contours to the west of the home's driveway no longer seem valid at all. The land near the house is easily 10-15 feet higher than the other "same" contours depicted on the other side of the driveway.

No one was home when I stopped by, so I parked along the south edge of M-46 and climbed the steep hill that leads to the edge of the yard. The ridge along the edge of this hill, which parallels the highway, is very obviously the highest point in the area. There are some rises in the home's backyard that seemed to be nearly as high as the ridge but I didn't think they were quite high enough to warrant visitation.

Since this area is right next to M-46, it would be very possible to reach the top and leave within 60 seconds flat. There isn't much in the way for views, so there's no reason to stay any longer than that.

In conclusion, I would speculate that the areas 1 and 2 of the eastern site and of course the more prominent western site are the highest in the county.

report with links to photos