James City County High Point Trip Report

six areas 3/4 mile south-southwest to 1 3/4 miles south-southeast of Barnhamsville (140+ ft)

Date: January 17, 2002
Author: Michael Schwartz

I visited these areas in south to north order and numbered them from 1-6, with #1 being the southernmost.

#1: Take exit 227 off I-64 and go north on VA 30. Just north of the ramp, see the 4-lane entrance to the golf course (not shown on topo), Fieldstone Road, going right (northeast). Go to the first marked crosswalk and park as best you can. Walk the concrete cart path to the ridge on the left (north) and find highest ground at the 6th tee. This will take less than five minutes.

#2: Go another 200+ yards north on VA 30 and pull into an obscure, gated driveway on the right, near a sign for the Williamsburg Christian Retreat Center. The driveway leads to an abandoned house, with high ground in the fields to the rear and side. From here I walked southeast across the swale to area #1 and verified its position relative to Fieldstone Road.

#3: Drive north of the CR 601 junction. High ground is at/near a white house with a large oak tree in front, just off the pavement on the west side of the road.

#4: Continue north on VA 30 and zero odometer at Fire Tower Road. The tower is visible from the road, but is not on a highpoint. Another 0.2 mile further north is high ground opposite a deli, not much more than the roadside berm, plus a patch of woods.

#5: A little more than 1/10 mile north of the deli, and just south of the CR 601/Holly Forks Road junction, houses #9901 and 9905 sit on a bump.

#6: Go 0.2 mile north of Holly Forks Road to a gated gravel road on the left (west) side of the road. This is 0.5 mile south of the county line, is gently posted by a radio tower company, and is shown on the topo as a jeep trail. I hiked past the open gate, passed over two bumps, then bore right at the major fork shown on the topo. Descend, then ascend, and see the radio tower and the main road forking left toward it. Take the lesser road straight/right, which has generic postings. One hundred feet ahead, go right on a dirt road that follows the ridge to the summit. Views of the tree farm to the north from the top. It was 15 minutes from car to summit.