Culpeper County Highpoint Trip Report
Date: October 2, 2004
Author: Don Desrosiers
Thought I would try to find the logging road up the hill from the bottom. I spent about a half hour on 603
looking for it, with no luck. Hughes River was high from the recent rains so I was unable to check much on
the far shore. Either way, the road/trail shown on the topo that comes up from 603, crosses the county line,
and goes to the ridge was not to be found. The only sure way would be to follow it out from the top and
see where you end up. The northern end may be easier to find.
Following Ryan Bowles' directions, VA 707 is 9/10 mile from the county line if going north on 231 and 7.5
south of the intersection of 231 and US 522 just east of Sperryville if going south. Major Brown Road is
4.4 miles from the 231/707 intersection with the sharp left at 5.8 miles.
The gate was shut, so we just walked up. Nobody was home to ask permission so, while feeling bad,
we went anyways. About 200 yards before reaching the house, there is a small set of steps on the left going up
the bank and a sign that reads "Davenport Loop Trl 1.4 mi". Since it was going up hill and was easier to
climb than the hill right near the house, I figured, "Take a chance." It went up steeply for about 100 yards
then met an old woods road going left/right toward the hill with the small 840+ area southeast of the house
near the county line. When I got just east of that point there was some surveyors tape pretty close to what I
took to be the county line.
Follow this road/trail up. It fades in and out but, if you pay attention, it beats bushwhacking. Someone has
put in a couple of small wooden bridges. At the second one just after a rocky area about 1050 feet
(Altimeter was in the car; fat lot of good it did me there.) you will come to a place where the trail meets a
road area at a flat spot maybe 50 feet long (and maybe 8 feet wide). The obvious trail will go to the right.
You want to go to the left. Although more overgrown, it will head down slightly before it takes you to the top.
If you get to a place where the trail slabs across a rock face about 20 feet wide, you missed the turn.
I know this because I missed the turn and eventually had to bushwhack about 150 vertical through much undergrowth.
The good part was that I found a blue metal stake in the ground about where I figured the county line should be.
The bad part was that it obviously was not at the point I sought.
From the top, finding the proper ridge is simple. Logging road goes a lot of the way. No idea where the
exact HP was but I was definitely in the immediate vicinity since I walked down the highest part of the ridge.
Walk until you are satisfied.
The logging road on the top of the 1240+ ft point is obvious. If you follow it back over the peak, it will head
due south before curving around to meet the trail you may or may not have missed on the way up.
This HP would be much easier in the winter. If someone knows a Boy Scout troop in the vicinity looking
for a service project, marking and clearing this overgrown trail comes to mind.
A little better than an hour round-trip once we left the car.