Guernsey County High Point Trip Report
three areas (1,320+ ft)
Date: May 25, 2003
Author: Bob Schwab
two areas within 200 feet of the county line (1,320+ ft)
From the intersection of Ohio Routes 265 and 147 (about 3.3 miles southwest of Barnesville), drive west on
Route 265 for only about 0.1 mile. Watch for a dirt track going north into the woods/brush and park here.
Hike north on the path which passes an old coal mine dump. The trail gets fainter beyond the coal mine,
bends sharply left, crosses a small stream and more or less heads west up the slope. Near the top of the hill,
you'll come upon a well-used ATV trail which you should cross and continue west through the woods to the
highpoint (area 1). The high contour is rather flat and just west of the county line. The highest spot is near
a tree with three survey ribbons and a survey stake labeled "TR #95."
After returning to your vehicle, continue west on Route 265 for 2.4 miles to Barker Road (2.5 miles west of
the Route 147/265 intersection). Turn right on Barker Road and go north for 2.2 miles (just past the county
line) to a long driveway to your left to a large, new house. The contractor building this house was quite
friendly and allowed me to explore the property to the west of the driveway. Hike up the driveway to where
it bends right and enter the woods to your left (west). You won't have to go very far into the brush/briars to
encounter an old remnant of a fence (I found one post and some wire) near a tree with a large, split branch.
Work your way through the briars/rosebushes to the ground just west of the tree and fence. This is area 2,
where the 1320-foot contour barely enters the county from the east. This one isn't as satisfying to visit as
the first area.
one strip-mined area 3/4 mile west of Sewellsville (1,320+ ft)
From the tiny settlement of Sewellsville on Route 800, find West Road and drive west for 0.8 mile to the
county line. Continue west another .2 mile and park along the road. Hike north into the grass to the highest
ground around. This is not the original highpoint. This entire area has been mined out, re-contoured, and
turned into a nature preserve. The original high ground (per Topo map) was closer to the county line but is
obviously much lower today. Relative GPS readings lead me to believe that the highest ground today
(west of the original site) is roughly 20 feet lower than the topo map indicates.
This third area is no longer worth visiting, unless you enjoy visiting old mine reclamation areas.