Lake of the Woods County Highpoint Trip Report

unnamed spot in clear cut forest, very flat (1,315+ ft)

Date: July 22, 2007
Author: Dave Covill

There is one trip report posted on cohp.org, by Dan Richardson, from 2002. I will label it incredibly short and somewhat inaccurate and leave it at that.

Dan notes to come from the South, on Highway 89. Actually, one leaves the town of Fourtown at Highway 89 and takes a paved CR 44 due north, then turns north onto gravel CR 704. I do not know if his term (~20 miles) is accurate, as I did not come from the south. He notes to turn right and go east about 6 miles, which looks about right on the DeLorme. He mentions a large clearing on the right, with a HP area relatively easy to pick out. This is somewhat misleading. It would not be easy to get to this CoHP with this trip report and no map.

The HP area of the 1,315-foot contour, as noted on the 7.5 minute map, is not in the large clearing but is in the smaller clearing a bit southeast of there. I have to say, having been to both spots, tromped around a bunch, hand-leveled, and called it all even, that the HP could well be in the large clearing, perhaps 1/4 mile out from the road, or it could be in the smaller clearing shaped like an arm to the southeast, next to or in a stand of trees, as noted on the topo. You make the call, I dunno. I would have to say that more land should be colored white and not green on the topo, a function of perhaps more clear-cutting occurring in recent years.

From MN 11 in Warroad, proceed southeast for 10 miles to the hamlet of Roosevelt. Reset to zero. Roosevelt = Percys Place and the Roosevelt Diner, and that's it. You can't miss it; it's about 0.3 mile west of the bend in the highway, and the county line between Roseau and Lake of the Woods.

At mile 0.0, go south on 697 Avenue (CR 141), a fine gravel road. At 0.2 mile, curve right (west) on 280th Street. At 1.6 miles, curve left (south) on 680 Avenue, which is well-signed for Norris Camp in 14 miles. Norris Camp is clearly visible on your topo map, and the HP is just beyond it. At 7.5 miles the road jogs right (west). At 8.2 miles it jogs back left (south). The road here is known as "Roosevelt / Norris Forest Road". At 14.4 miles, reach a "T" at "Butterfield / Forest Road". Go right (west). At 15.5 miles jog left (south) and at 15.9 jog right (west). At 16.4 miles, reach a State Wildlife Camp, a.k.a. Norris Camp, and curve left then right and zig around the Camp going westward. There are several buildings, although I did not see any people. At 17.3 miles angle leftward or southwest. At 17.6 miles stop at a gentle crest in the still very good gravel road. It is 0.3 mile from here further southwest to the next curve which leads slightly more due west, and another 0.3 mile further to where there is a noticeable dirt road forking off to the right and proceeding due west away from the road. You may wish to get this far and go back to orient yourself, I did. This spot is at mile 18.2 and is clearly ten or more feet lower than the gentle rise.

I headed out into the very open clear-cut area at the crest of the rise. It seemed to have a highest area perhaps 1/4 mile in to the southeast. I then wandered due south and into an arm of the clear-cut area that appears to contain what the topo map says is the 1,315-foot contour. I hand-leveled back north and felt I was even with or slightly lower than out in the widest field. It isn't a field, as there is 1-2 feet of low grass and minor brush to walk around, as if it had been cut a number of years ago. This one is pretty indistinct. Roam around and call it good.

The road is generally very good but has a weak shoulder in spots, such that it goes down to one lane. Also, there is extreme deer danger here. While the road is capable of being driven at about 45+ mph, I would suggest toning it down a bit, as a leaping deer could put you in the ditch to avoid it.

topo chart