Order of Visit: High Point #41
Date Visited: June 5, 2021
Route Taken: Single lane dirt road from the property’s entrance – 2.5 miles round-trip
Type of Terrain: Open farmland and rolling hills
Elevation: 1,235 feet
Ancestral Lands: Kickapoo, Sauk and Mskwaki, Myaamia, Ho-Chunk
WHAT’S IN A NAME?
Illinois has the only state high point named after a mound, rather than a more typical terrain feature like a hill, mountain, butte, or mesa. To unravel how this unusual name came to be, we have to understand the topography of a unique portion of the upper Midwest called the “Driftless Area.”
In the 1820s, settlers from the East Coast began making their way to frontier communities on part of the Mississippi River Valley. These newcomers moved into the Driftless Area looking for farmland, but soon discovered lodes of Galena ore (the leading source of lead) along the river. Consequently, miners flooded into Illinois, making it the source of America’s first “mineral rush”.
Elijah Charles was one of many pioneers from Pennsylvania who traveled west toward the Mississippi in search of a future. He built a small log home in 1828 and set it at the base of a knoll only about a quarter-mile from the edge of the Wisconsin Territory. From that point forward, locals began referring to the grassy hill behind his home as “Charles Mound.”
The Charles family lived in the home for several years, however, it turns out they never actually owned the land that continues to carry their surname. Thus, the name of Illinois’ high point simply seems to be a matter of Elijah Charles being in the right place, at the right time, early in the state’s history.
Less than a decade later after his arrival, Elijah Charles would pull up roots and move down to nearby Galena, Illinois – which then rivaled Chicago in size thanks to the enormous influx of eager miners. He served as Galena’s Justice of the Peace and even unsuccessfully run for the state legislature (coming in a distant fourth place in 1837).
He died on May 31, 1843, at his daughter’s home in Potosi, Wisconsin Territory, about 35 miles further up river.
TRIP SUMMARY
As most highpointers know, Illinois can be a real challenge to cross off your bucket list. That’s because, unlike some of the other privately-owned state high points (i.e., North Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas, or Indiana), the owners of Charles Mound restrict public access to a mere 10 days each year!
I didn’t even try to visit in 2020, given everything that was going on with the pandemic and travel restrictions. But, I was really hoping to give it a shot this year.
After repeatedly monitoring the Highpointers Club website, I was pleasantly surprised to find that the owners planned to open their gates and welcome guests on the weekend of June 5-6th, 2021. I had that weekend wide open. So, if all went well, 2021 would be the year I’d finally get to visit the Illinois high point.
Of course, it made little sense to fly all the way out there from Oregon just to walk up to this relatively sedate high point. So I planned several days of vacation in early June to wander out to the rest of my other unvisited state high points in in the Great Lakes region. Namely, Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Iowa.
(Yes, I realize Iowa doesn’t touch any of the Great Lakes, but its state high point was just 3.5 miles over the Minnesota border, and so I figured I’d might as was well add it to the itinerary…)
After driving a giant 1400-mile loop around the Upper Midwest over the past several days and visiting those other four states, I was finally ready to drop in on Charles Mound on June 5th.
I woke up this morning in Albert Lea, Minnesota, where I’d camped in a state park overnight. One of the ways I try to defray the cost of my multi-state travels is to bring my tent for camping each night. It’s far cheaper than booking hotel rooms, and I get to experience the natural and unique beauty of the places I visit.
And so, my day would begin with a solid 250 miles of driving to get to Charles Mound.
After breakfast, I dropped down into Iowa and drove across a large chunk of the state toward Dubuque (the closest “big” town to Charles Mound). Before this highpointing trip, I didn’t know anything about Dubuque other than it rested right on the western banks of the Mississippi River, right where the Iowa, Wisconsin, and Illinois converge.
However, if you ever find yourself in the area, I’d strongly suggest a stop in this Dubuque, as it’s quite lovely. The National Mississippi River Museum & Aquarium is located directly on the water. Plus there’s the a picuteseque area called the ‘Historic Millwork District’ with old warehouses that have been repurposed into retail shops, small businesses, and restaurants.
I arrived in Dubuque just in time for lunch, so I dropped in the Millwork District to grab a pint and a burger at 7 Hills Brewing Co. – one of downtown’s six (!) microbrewies. The food and atmosphere was great, and I was glad to have something other than typical road food filling my belly.
With my hunger sated, I was final ready to cross the wide Mississippi River and head east into Illinois where Charles Mound awaited.
The final 30 miles of the drive from Dubuque to Charles Mound took me through rolling hills and farms before depositing me in the tiny town of Scales Mound. Luckily, I’d had the foresight to jot down the driving directions back at the brewery because I lost cell reception shortly after leaving Dubuque.
When I arrived at the driveway for 688 Charles Mound Road, I didn’t have any doubts I was in the right place. There was already a line of about a dozen cars (and even two RVs) parked on the side of the narrow road.
The Wuebbel family (who owns the high point) asks that all visitors park down on the paved road and walk the final 1.25 miles up their dirt drive to the high point. It’s a nice little trek that takes you around the perimeter of one of their neighbor’s fields.
The road gradually climbs and meanders through the property, and I noticed a handful of small orange signs directing visitors where to go as the road forked or turned along the way.
Despite the number of cars parked on the road, no one else seemed to be heading up toward the high point. However, every 3-4 minutes of my journey, I crossed paths with couples and families heading back down. Apparently my lunch stop in Dubuque put me at the tail end of the surge of Charles Mound visitors on this warm Saturday afternoon.
Once I got out of the trees, a dominant feature filled my line of sight for the rest of the walk up. It was a large, picturesque red barn. The barn doesn’t sit atop Charles Mound, but it signals where you’ll begin the final steep ascent that’s just around the bend.
Just past the barn, I finally encountered some first people headed up in the same direction as me. It was an older couple, and they seemed to be struggling a little with that short, steep hill. They had to stop to rest and catch their breath twice during that final 100 yards.
Their rest breaks worked in my favor though. It allowed me to arrive at the summit a minute or two ahead of them and get some quick photos with nobody else in the background.
Atop the summit, I could see a blue and white sign on a tripod made from three small logs lashed together. This was the summit sign finally welcoming me to Charles Mound.
Beyond the high point’s crest, there was a concrete block with the survey marker and a metal box containing the high point’s guest register. The front page of the binder listed the open access dates for the year and warned visitors if they were at the summit outside those dates, they were definitely trespassing!
On the following page, there was also a little explanation of why the family had recently expanded the open access dates to ten days per year.
In the past, the family only allowed highpointers to visit their property during the first full weekends of June, July, August, and September. However, a group of firefighters in Seattle was bitten by the highpointing bug and reached out to the Wuebbels’ family to explain their dilemma.
The crew was always busy fighting wildfires during the summer months, so they couldn’t visit during the regular open-access dates. So they asked if it was possible to accommodate them by adding one additional day (or two) outside the peak fire season.
This must have been a compelling request because now there’s access to the high point on Presidents’ Weekend each February.
I sure hope those firefighters from Seattle dressed warmly for their visit too! I’m not sure I’d be willing to brave the cold northern Illinois temperatures to get out to this high point in the dead of winter!
Note: After my visit, I was curious enough to check the local weather on February 13-14, 2021 (Presidents’ Day weekend). Saturday’s high temperature was 1°F and the low was -9°F. Meanwhile, Sunday’s high temperature was -2°F and the low was -10°F. Brrrrr… That’s brisk!
I flipped back to the guest register pages to add my name and hometown. As I did this, I started to feel a bit of awe come over me.
This was high point #41 for me. The number of high points remaining on my list is now down to the single digits! I only have one state east of the Rocky Mountains left to complete. (New York – just in case you were wondering).
I had no idea the can of worms I was opening when I hiked up Mt. Katahdin in July 2018. Back then, I knew absolutely nothing about the concept of highpointing. Heck, I probably couldn’t even name five of the state high points, let alone which ones were difficult to get.
And now, less than three years later – I’ve visited 41/50!
DETAILS
When to Visit: This hike is on private property and only open to the public only a handful of times each year. The Highpointer’s Club publishes each year’s open access dates HERE.
Getting There: Charles Mound is located in the northwest corner of Illinois, approximately 30 miles east of Dubuque, Iowa. Although this high point is only 1,200 feet from the Illinois-Wisconsin border, the property’s driveway is located on Charles Mound Road. Thus, all visitors will need to approach it from the south. The street address is 688 Charles Mound Rd.
Entrance Fees/Permits: None. However, this high point is located on Jean and Wayne Wuebbels’ farm. The owners ask that visitors respect their privacy and only attempt to visit on the open access dates (no exceptions!). Their only other rules are:
- NO CARS on their property. Visitors are asked to park on the road and walk the one mile up the gravel drive.
- NO PETS allowed on their property. The owners have a Doberman Pinscher who may be out during visits.
- NO VISITS after dark.
Parking: Visitors should park on Charles Mound Road. This is a narrow road with no shoulder, so all cars should park on the north side of the road to allow other vehicle traffic to pass. There are no bathrooms or portapotties available.
Accessibility: Visitors need the ability to walk 2.5 miles (roundtrip) from the edge of the property to the high point. It is a relatively easy walk, with minimal elevation gain until the final 100 yards
Resources:
- An Overview of Charles Mound (Summit Post)
- Open Accès Dates for Charles Mound (Highpointer’s Club)
- Route Overview (All Trails)