Heading west across southern Minnesota on I-90 there isn’t much to see or do other than enjoying the peaceful rolling hills and seemingly endless farm fields. To break up the monotony, I took a small detour south back across the Iowa border and headed to a small town named Sibley to visit Hawkeye Point, the highest point in the state. Unsurprisingly it’s in the middle of an area surrounded by corn fields. Finding the location is quite easy – just follow the signs.
From the main turn-off from IA-60 to 130th Street it only takes a couple hundred yards driving past the Hawkeye Point campground and down the entrance driveway to reach your destination. I arrived during the golden hour shortly before sunset and there was only one other family here. They didn’t stay long and soon I had the place to myself.
After you park and survey the area, you’ll find several points of interest: a silo with an observation deck, a barn with historical items and signs, a picnic shelter made out of a grain bin, a display of antique farm equipment, and various markers and decorations surrounding the highpoint.
First off, nearest the parking lot you’ll see the antique farm machinery display right away. There are more machines and implements outside the fenced area but I’m no farmer so I won’t pretend to know or be super interested in those. But if you enjoy farm antiques then this might be the place for you!
In the near distance is another more modern silo or maybe a water tank that has large painted letters reading “HAWKEYE POINT ELEVATION: 1,670′ HIGHEST POINT IN IOWA.”
Inside the barn you can find some historic photographs and descriptive plaques detailing local history, old buildings, and farming life. Peeking behind the boards you can also see a bunch of antiques which I believe are supposed to be “hands-on” but I didn’t spend much time exploring them (again not my thing, sorry!).
Drawing my focus back to the actual highpoint markers, you can see the gravel driveway leads almost directly up to the monument making this accessible for everyone of all mobility levels. Looking left to right you will find a small signboard, a flagpole, several posts with distance markers, some sitting benches, and a large marker in the center. Some things not shown clearly in this image are a selfie-photo stand, two educational signs with nature and historical information, and a large rock in memory of Kirk Grau, the creator of the Hawkeye Point Foundation.
Approaching closer you can more clearly see the five sign posts with directions and mileage to the other 49 US highpoints, the memorial benches, the large circular mosaic in the center, and a large granite stone engraved with “STERLER FARM” to commemorate the family who owned the land before donating this portion to the county so it could be enjoyed by all.
Here’s a closer view of the large tile mosaic at the center of the highpoint display. Appears to be made of hundreds of glass tiles arranged in the shape of a compass with the state of Iowa’s outline in the center and HAWKEYE POINT text circling it.
Looking back to the left you’ll find a large double-sided information board containing local history information, details on the highpoint, the highpoint register book, and a small mailbox with key chains for $2 as souvenirs for your visit. Not shown here is the reverse side that has a decorative collection of license plates from other states.
As always you should be able to find some kind of plaque like the one shown below denoting involvement from the Highpointers Foundation and Highpointers Club which are the official orgs for this hobby.
Heading to the old grain silo there is a set of stairs and a large observation deck for the best overview of the highpoint.
And here’s the view overlooking the displays below from the deck area. I must say that even though I was out here in the middle of nowhere late in the afternoon I couldn’t have picked a better time. As the sun was getting low it illuminated the corn the most fantastic golden hue. Temperatures were around 70°F with a slight breeze and I was alone except for a few birds and some rabbits in the grass.
And finally here is just a quick panorama I snapped with my iPhone before heading out. Just a quiet and peaceful evening down on the farm. Endless blue skies and amber waves of grain. Not too shabby!
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