Banner County High Point Trip Report
"The Table"
Date: June 16, 2001
Author: John Mitchler
Located along the NE-WY border in the Panhandle of Nebraska, this highpoint consists of a broad rise in farming country.
The HP itself is on CRP land retired from crops and allowed to return to grass. Two other areas were determined to be lower
via hand leveling. As a bonus, the former state highpoint of NE is located just 4 miles north.
Directions: From the west, take Exit 17 on I-25 in Wyoming and go 47 miles north on US85 to WY151. Go east 4 mile on
WY151 to La Grange. Continue east to WY215 and turn south. Do not go to the state line because the county roads do not
extend south to the cohp, despite what DeLorme shows. Instead, go south on gravel CR55 east of La Grange and enjoy the
climb up the breaks as the road reaches the top of "The Table." After 11 miles note how the railroad goes under the road via a
tunnel. After 11.8 miles reach CR233 (Holgerson Rd) and turn left (east) onto this gravel road and go 2.4 miles to paved
CR165 (CR261) which is the state line. At this point, two areas lay to your right (south) and one area lies to your left (north).
Two Southern Areas: From the intersection of CR233 and paved CR165, go south on CR165 for 2.9 miles to two rises along
the road. The road cut requires a 10 foot climb up broken limestone. Hand leveling indicates the southern area is higher than
the northern area, and both are lower than the broad area far to the north. I doubt very much if either of these two areas is the
true cohp. So just go to the one northern area.
One Northern Area: From the intersection of CR233 and paved CR165, go north on CR165 1.3 mile to CR16. Turn right
(east) onto gravel CR16 and go 0.4 mile and park off the road near a row of small pine trees that extend south. Stroll a half
mile south to a broad rise. The HP is along the fence line, and although a hill to the east appears higher it hand levels lower.
I talked to Richard Person in the house on paved CR165 which is 0.4 miles south of CR16. A pleasant fellow, he directed us
to Lee & Charlene Malm who live 1.0 mile east on CR16. Charlene was very pleasant and invited us into their home, mostly to
show it in case we'd like to buy it. They remembered Bob Martin's visit. I gave them a copy of the HP Club newsletter.
To access this area from the east, take CR14 west from NE71 at milepost 33.5. Go about 15 miles on CR14 to the state line.
Go north on the state line road for a mile to CR16.
Mitchler Rating: C (one area to visit, trivial gain & hike, average - boring)