US County High Points
The highest point in every one of the 3,143 United States counties — from a roadside marker in flat Iowa farmland to the technical summit of the Grand Teton. No other peakbagging project covers more of America. This is the pursuit that takes a lifetime.
The County Highpointing Challenge
County highpointing — known in the community as “COHPing” — is the pursuit of standing on the highest ground in every US county. It is a man-made list by definition: county boundaries are political constructs laid over the terrain with no regard for topography. This quirk is precisely what makes the challenge so bizarre, varied, and compelling.
Some county high points are the most dramatic mountains in America — the Grand Teton is a county high point (Teton County, WY). Mount Rainier is a county high point (Pierce County, WA). Mount Hood is a county high point (Hood River County, OR). And then there’s the other extreme: a slightly elevated patch of a Kansas wheat field, a gravel pullout on a Nebraska highway, the backyard of a house in Delaware. No other peakbagging list reveals as much of America’s actual landscape.
The County Highpointers Association (cohp.org) is the definitive resource — trip reports, directions, access notes, and completion tracking for all 3,143 county high points. Founded by Andy Martin, who wrote the foundational guidebook County High Points (available directly from the organization), cohp.org is an essential companion for any serious COHPer.
Most peakbagging lists are about going UP. County highpointing is about going everywhere. It will send you to places you’d never otherwise visit — rural Mississippi hill country, the ancient volcanic ridges of eastern New Mexico, the lonesome plateau corners of the Colorado–Utah border, and the tundra-scraped summits of remote Alaska. No other list does more to make you understand the physical geography of the United States.
Notable County High Points
Famous Summits That Double as County High Points
Some of the most celebrated peaks in the United States happen to also be county high points. These are worth noting — you may already have some checked off without realizing it.
| Peak | County, State | Elevation | Why It’s Famous |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Teton | Teton Co., WY | 13,775 ft | Most iconic technical alpine peak in the lower 48. Class 5 rock climbing required. |
| Mount Rainier | Pierce Co., WA | 14,411 ft | Most glaciated peak in the lower 48. Full expedition with rope team required. |
| Mount Hood | Hood River Co., OR | 11,249 ft | Oregon’s highest. Glacier travel, technical, crevasse hazard. |
| Mount Whitney | Tulare Co., CA | 14,505 ft | Highest peak in the contiguous US. 22-mile trail, lottery permit. |
| Longs Peak | Larimer Co., CO | 14,259 ft | Northernmost Colorado 14er. Class 3 Keyhole Route. RMNP permit. |
| Pikes Peak | El Paso Co., CO | 14,115 ft | America’s most famous mountain. Road to summit; or 26-mile Barr Trail. |
| Kings Peak | Duchesne Co., UT | 13,528 ft | Utah’s state high point. 28-mile RT from Henry’s Fork trailhead. |
| Mount Elbert | Lake Co., CO | 14,440 ft | Highest peak in the Rockies. Class 1 trail hike. |
| Wheeler Peak | Taos Co., NM | 13,161 ft | New Mexico state high point. 14-mile RT from Taos. |
| Humphreys Peak | Coconino Co., AZ | 12,633 ft | Arizona state high point. Above Flagstaff. 10-mile RT. |
| Mount Washington | Coos Co., NH | 6,288 ft | Highest in Northeast. “Worst weather in America.” Road and cog railway. |
| Mount Katahdin | Piscataquis Co., ME | 5,269 ft | Northern terminus of the Appalachian Trail. Day permit required. |
The 20 Hardest County High Points (Excluding Alaska)
The County Highpointers Association maintains a list of the 20 toughest county high points in the lower 48. These are peaks where technical climbing, extreme remoteness, or both make them a genuine expedition. Bob Packard is the only person known to have climbed all 20.
| Peak | County, State | Elevation | Challenge |
|---|---|---|---|
| Grand Teton | Teton Co., WY | 13,775 ft | Class 5 technical rock climbing. Guide strongly recommended. |
| Kawaikini | Kauai Co., HI | 5,243 ft | Famously inaccessible rainforest summit. Wettest spot on Earth nearby. Off-trail jungle. |
| Mount Rainier | Pierce Co., WA | 14,411 ft | Full glacier expedition. Crevasse hazard. Multi-day. |
| Mount Hood | Hood River Co., OR | 11,249 ft | Glacier travel, 45° slopes, serious crevasse hazard. |
| Granite Peak | Carbon Co., MT | 12,799 ft | Most technical lower-48 state high point. Multi-day approach + technical climbing. |
| Gannett Peak | Fremont Co., WY | 13,804 ft | Most remote lower-48 high point. 40+ mile RT. Glacier travel. |
| Mount Russell | Mono Co., CA | 14,088 ft | Technical Class 4–5 routes above 14,000 ft in the Sierra Nevada. |
| Mount Williamson | Inyo Co., CA | 14,379 ft | Second highest in California. Brutal Class 2+ boulder approach with no maintained trail. |
| North Palisade | Fresno Co., CA | 14,242 ft | Most technical of California’s 14ers. Class 4 U-Notch couloir approach. |
| Little Bear Peak | Alamosa Co., CO | 14,037 ft | Among the most dangerous Colorado 14ers. Loose Class 4 above 13,000 ft. |
The Most Unlikely County High Points
On the opposite end of the spectrum, some county high points are delightfully absurd — making them memorable in a completely different way.
| Peak / High Point | County, State | Elevation | Character |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ebright Azimuth | New Castle Co., DE | 442 ft | Suburban Delaware near a trailer park. A low stone marker in an unremarkable field. |
| Jerimoth Hill | Providence Co., RI | 812 ft | Rhode Island’s state high point — a modest woodland rise with a short path from the road. |
| Panorama Point | Kimball Co., NE | 5,424 ft | Nebraska’s highest county high point — on private ranch land near Wyoming border. Basically flat. |
| Various Iowa counties | Statewide, IA | 500–1,670 ft | Iowa’s county high points are notorious among COHPers — often unmarked agricultural fields requiring GPS to confirm the highest contour. |
| Various flat Texas counties | Multiple, TX | ~3,000 ft | West Texas county high points can be indistinguishable rises in scrubland — local knowledge essential. |
State-by-State Progress Tracker
With 3,143 individual county high points, tracking progress works best at the state level. Click any state card to cycle through its status: Not Started → In Progress → Complete → Not Started.
Utah’s 29 County High Points
Utah — 29 Counties, Incredible Variety
From Kings Peak (13,528 ft) deep in the Uintas to canyon-country mesa tops above Moab — Utah’s county high points span more landscape diversity than almost any other state.
Utah’s 29 counties are distributed across five distinct landscapes: the Wasatch Front (home to Mount Nebo, Juab/Utah Co high point at 11,928 ft), the remote Uintas (Kings Peak, Gilbert Peak), the desert canyon country (La Sal Mountains), the high plateau country (Aquarius Plateau, Fish Lake Hightop), and the Great Basin ranges (Ibapah Peak, Deseret Peak). The guidebook High in Utah (Weibel and Miller) is the standard reference.
★ Mount Nebo is the high point for both Juab and Utah counties — one mountain, two county credits.
High in Utah (Weibel and Miller) — the standard Utah county highpoint guidebook.
Hiking Utah’s Summits — companion volume covering routes to Utah’s county high points.
cohp.org/utah — trip reports and detailed access information for all 29 Utah county high points.
Strategy for the Lifetime Challenge
Think in States, Not Counties
The most practical approach to county highpointing is to work through states systematically — completing all counties in a state before moving on. This minimizes travel distances, allows you to acquire state-specific guidebooks, and provides the satisfying milestone of “completing” a state. Most serious COHPers begin with their home state and surrounding region.
Recommended Starting Points
- Your home state first. Familiarity with the terrain and logistics makes the learning curve easier. For Utah, this means working through 29 counties — a substantial but completable project.
- Eastern states are often faster. Most New England, Mid-Atlantic, and southern states have county high points that are trail-accessible day hikes or short drives. Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New England can each be completed in a few dedicated weekends.
- Save the hard western states for later. California, Wyoming, Montana, and especially Alaska contain county high points requiring mountaineering expeditions. Build skills first.
- Road-trip the Great Plains states. States like Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and the Dakotas can be covered efficiently by car — often multiple county high points in a single day.
- Alaska is its own expedition. Alaska’s 29 boroughs/census areas contain some of the most remote terrain on Earth. Many county high points in Alaska have never been climbed. Consider Alaska last and budget multi-week expeditions.
Required Resources
- cohp.org — the essential starting point. Trip reports, directions, and access notes for every county in every state.
- Andy Martin’s “County High Points” — the original guidebook. 126 pages covering every state. Order through cohp.org.
- State-specific guidebooks — California (Suttle), Colorado (Mitchler/Covill), Utah (Weibel/Miller), Idaho available.
- CalTopo + Gaia GPS — for counties without established trails, topographic maps and offline GPS are essential.
- Landowner contact lists — dozens of county high points sit on private land. cohp.org maintains current access information.
A significant number of US county high points lie on private property. Some landowners welcome visitors (Kansas and Midwest farm counties are generally friendly), while others do not permit access. Several county high points are on military installations and are permanently inaccessible. Always verify current access at cohp.org before visiting any county high point. Trespassing can result in arrest — the County Highpointers Association motto includes a clear warning: “access in the past does not guarantee present access.”