Whitman County High Point Trip Report
Date: August 17, 2000
Author: Barney Metz
The Whitman County highpoint is an easy bag and I would encourage anybody traveling north and south
along US-195 or US-95 to pick it up.
I did it alone and used John Roper's report. However, I will submit a little more detailed report to make
the trip even easier. Upon leaving the town of Tekoa, WA, when heading west on HWY 27 you will see
mile marker 49. You need to go 0.85 miles West to a dirt road on the right hand side of the road. It looks
like it leads to a farmhouse, but the place is Tekoa Mountain Auto Parts. So, take the right from HWY
27, travel about 200 hundred yards to a "Y". To the left is the junk yard, to the right you will travel an
unmarked road to the top.
If you miss the gravel road off HWY 27 and end up at Wilbur-Ellis crop-dusting runway, then head back
east on HWY 27 and take the next left. I made this mistake, twice.
Once at the top there is gate and you have to walk the last hundred yards to the communication towers. I
walked around all three sites just to be safe. The microwave tower is the highest by land mass, but the
other tower is the true highest point on the mountain. The communications equipment is three separate
companies, American Tower, Whitman County Sheriff's Office, and the other had different signs, none
indicating ownership.
The road can be driven in a car, but a warning. When John said this is a rough road, it is rough. I think I
rattled out several hundred screws. It was rough enough to dislodge my truck box. Easy for clearance,
just rough.
There are no signs to mark or to say "Stay Out , No Trespassing", for the road. You cannot enter the sites,
but there were no signs from the highway until you hit the fenced off areas. There is a frame for a sign, I
believe this is where the Tekoa Mountain Auto Parts store sign used to hang. It is very important that you
pay attention to mileage and you find mile marker 49. I used John's mileage and ended up twice at the
Wilbur-Ellis site.