Hawkeye Point – Sibley, Iowa - Atlas Obscura

Hawkeye Point

Sibley, Iowa

The highest point in Iowa, while not that impressive to mountain states, has earned its own monuments. 

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Under the stewardship of Merrill and Donna Sterler, Hawkeye Point is the highest point in Iowa at 1,670 feet above sea level.

The Sterlers welcomed visitors from across the world to the farm. The markers stood at the end of a hog feeding trough on their farm north of Sibley, Iowa, but the trough has recently been replaced with a kiosk containing information about the history of the family and the area, as well as a collection of classic license plates from many different states, all nailed to the trough and later the kiosk. They also provided souvenir keychains, of course.

Merrill passed away in 2004, and Donna donated some of the land and later sold five more acres to Osceola County to be used as a park in 2008. The trough is now gone, but in its place are a new marker disc and signposts showing the direction and distance to the other 49 United States state highpoints. Various other improvements are planned for the future, such as a campground and observation tower.

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