Cedar County High Point Trip Report
four areas (1,920+ ft)
Date: July 16, 2002
Author: Bob Schwab
From the intersection of US 81 and US 20, proceed north on US 81 for a total 6 miles,
crossing the Pierce-Cedar County line at the 5 mile mark. Turn left, go west for about 0.35 mile and park
on the edge of the road.
About 600 feet directly south of the road is the highpoint of area 1 which is located in a cornfield.
The going was a bit rough, because the corn was about shoulder-high when I visited. I was still able to walk
between the rows and worked my way to where I think the highest ground was located.
Area 2 is the large contour that runs east-west just north of the road. The western half was planted with
beans and the eastern side was planted with corn when I visited, which allowed me easy access to the center
via the corn-bean boundary line. I did some reconnoitering into the corn and concluded that the highest spot
was east of the bean-corn boundary and just west of some adjacent trees.
From the bean-corn boundary, I could clearly see areas 3 and 4 which are both off to the northwest and
planted in beans. Walking in cultivated bean fields is not difficult if the rows are well-defined, as these were.
I was able to do some good hand level comparisons and back-sightings which indicated that area 3 and area
4 are both lower than area 2.
It would be best to visit this area when the crops have been harvested, but it is possible to hike to all four
areas if you do so with care and sensitivity to the crops. By the way, two of the three highpoint areas in
adjacent Pierce County are near the US 81 approach to this site, so consider visiting them as well when you
are in this area.