Franklin County High Point Trip Report
eight areas (1,130+ ft)
Date: April 6, 2003
Author: Bob Schwab
The high ground in Franklin County hugs the northeastern corner of the county and cuts across two quads,
Sunbury (north) and New Albany (south). One area extends into both quads, so there are really just eight
distinct contours to investigate.
From the intersection of US 62 and Ohio Route 161 in New Albany (northeast of Columbus), travel
northeast on US 62 for 3.6 miles to the Franklin/Licking county line. Turn left on Tippet Road and continue
north about 0.35 mile to the Franklin/Delaware county line. At this point, you can either park along the
edge of this road just north of the county line, or you can approach one of the last three houses on the west
side of the road. These homes all sit on the first high contour (the one that spans both quads and extends in
from the east). The middle house (beige with green roof) sits on the highest ground in area 1, and has a
wide-open back yard with easy access to the bean field to the west, which you will have to cross to visit the
second area which intrudes from the north, roughly 0.4 mile west and on the northern county line. If no one
is home to grant permission, you can hike west along the fence that marks the northern county boundary to
get past the houses and then cross over into the field, but if you can find anyone at home in any of these
houses (I wasn't so lucky), it will make your visit much easier to area 2
(there's some brushy areas to get through).
After visiting these two areas, drive south on Tippet Road back to the intersection with US 62. Directly
across the road is a U-shaped drive. The Jersey Chapel is gone, but the driveway remains and is a good
place to park. Hike out into a wheat field immediately west of this parking area to visit area 3. This flat
area is bounded by power lines, the highway, and the county line. Areas 4 and 5 are both small areas in the
field/pasture/yard along the southern side of US 62. Walk southwest from area 3 along the edge of the road
and you'll find area 4 in the field (close to the road) after you pass a small wooded area where a house was
once located. Area 5 is due south, farther out into the grass/field and even less prominent than area 4.
Both of these spots are pretty flat, and in my opinion are lower than areas 1 and 2.
Return to your car in the old Jersey Chapel spot, and hike due south on the east side of the fence.
The walking is much better on the cornfield side of the fence than on the west side, where there's a lot of brush,
young trees, etc. Walk down to the corner of the field and find a hole/trail to a wheat field to the west (posted),
very close to a hunter's stand in a tree. This field and the adjoining trees/brush cover a large flat area (# 6)
on the west side of the fence. From the wheat field, you can see directly through to the houses
and US 62 off to the west. I walked around in the trees/brush but didn't really find anything like a high spot,
nor did I find any trace of the radio tower shown on the topo.
Return to your car and drive south on US 62 for about 0.9 mile to Walnut Street. Turn left and drive east to
the circle at the end. I parked here and hiked east across the field toward the tree line. Walk south when
you get within about 100 feet of the trees. You should be able to find some high ground in a hard-scrabble
area (rocky) along the edge of the field (area 7). This is a fairly large area, and definitely feels higher than
area 6. You can hike south, roughly the length of the field and still stay within this contour. Finally, there is
a tiny (microscopic) intrusion from the east that you can visit by continuing south into the next field.
Unless you're a purist, area 8 isn't worth visiting, since it's nothing more than a place where the 1,130-foot
contour touches the county line.