Hochste GebirgscRegion Der Berks Grafschaft
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Hochste GebirgscRegion Der Berks Grafschaft ... auf English means ... Berks County's Highest Mountainous Region. This is the true high point in Berks County.
Many people believe that the famous "Pinnacle" in Berks County is the highest point in the county, and that spot is visited regularly by hikers and outdoor enthusiasts. Only problem is that the Pinnacle is not Berks County's highest peak. The site of this cache is the actual highest point in Berks. Check your USGS maps and you'll see, the Pinnacle is listed with a lower elevation than this point along the AT west of Route 183!
Perhaps it's because this point or peak does not have a stunning view like the Pinnacle, or perhaps because it is off of the beaten path, unlike the Pinnacle, this point is rarely visited. It is a very pristine spot.
I first learned of this interesting fact while reading a Reading Eagle newspaper article by Bruce Posten.
An octogenarian by the name of "Caleb" from Bethel Township stepped forward to remind everyone that the Pinnacle is not the highest point, rather, it is another point located somewhere about 2 miles west of where the Appalachian Trail crosses Route 183, and about a half mile south of the AT itself. It took me about a year to finally get around to this project, but I tracked down Caleb and was pleased to find him still alive and well and hiking whenever possible. I conferred with Caleb and got his verbal description of the high point and with that, I armed myself with a regular compass and a USGS contour map of the region. Caleb has since passed away.
It was in the winter of 2003 that I finally found the time to go and see if I could find the true high point of Berks. The goal was to find it, mark it with GPS coordinates, and share it with any of you who may have a desire to actually stand atop the peak. There was close to 2 feet of snow on the ground so I teamed up with a friend, long distance hiker, author and fellow cross country skier, (I gave her the Geocache name Sierra Madre, as she is also the mother of two), and the two of us set out to bushwhack our way toward the discovery of the summit. With no vegetation and a good snowpack we could use dead-reckoning along with the compass and map to follow the contour and make guesses as to where the point might be once we left the AT to find it. We were able to locate and mark the site and it was clear that no human had been to the site throughout the winter. (I doubt if anyone has been to the site for years prior to this GPS marking. Caleb told me that he was there decades ago and almost no one ever goes because no one knows where it is, yet alone realizes that it is the highest point in the county. He also told me that he had heard that there was a USGS button marker on the site but he could never find it. We couldn't find it either, not in winter and not when we actually placed the cache. If anyone ever finds an actual survey marker, please report it as that would be a neat next chapter to this story. Likewise, if anyone ever finds a point that they believe is higher in Berks, please feel free to send me the coordinates.)
Now about the cache: Park on Route 183 near where the AT crosses the road. Proceed west on the AT. You could also bushwhack, but if you follow the AT you will come to a very interesting historic marker which commemorates the site of a fort which was once located there in 1755! Stop and let history guide your imagination! The historic marker is located at N40.31.541, W076.13.722, appx 1,450 feet above sea level.
Next move along the AT toward a spot on the trail where there are markings that indicate a "pay attention" zone. This is at N40.31.381, W076.15.175, appx 1,580 feet above sea level. (Notice that you have been gradually ascending.)
You may be tempted to leave the AT earlier than this point in order to follow your GPS coordinates in a literal direction, but if you go to the aforementioned coordinates and use that spot as your final point on the AT before turning south and following your GPS for the final 3 or 4 tenths of a mile, you will save yourself some bushwhacking. At this point on the trail you may also notice that the white AT markings continue off in a westerly direction, and there is another set of white markings, almost like AT markings, on trees that seem to head off south almost in the direction of the high point. You can actually follow these southerly white markings for a bit, but soon they simply end and you're truly bushwhacking your way to the high point and the cache. It is a nice off-trail experience...very sylvan woods!
There is no way you will see your final destination from the AT. In fact, in summer, you may have to get to within two hundred feet before it finally emerges from the surrounding forest. It is really neat to get to this spot as it offers a real sense of accomplishment and a sense of doing something few have ever done...stand on Berks County's highest point. Imagine...our cache was placed in 2003 and yet few humans have ever been on this spot! Wow! (I suspect that Geocaching will improve the visitation statistics a bit.)
The coordinates as listed for the cache will lead you to the cache which is hidden near the high point itself. It is a hand-painted ammo box, like most of our cache containers. This one is black with white and gold trim. When we originally hid it, it contained more than one hundred and fifty dollars worth of goodies including classical and folk music CDs, a travel bug, mountain mist candles, toys for the children, and lots of other stuff.
The site is at +/- 1,685 to 1,705 feet above sea level, depending on your GPS that day. We had different accuracy readings on the two different days we worked on the site. Basically a +/- of 21' accuracy seems normal up there.
Finally, we built a small stone cairn upon the base rock of what we believe to be the actual highest rock on the highest point. There is nothing inside of the cairn. It is just a cairn to mark the high point. You will no doubt find it to be a welcome sight upon your arrival. Please add a small stone to the cairn so it grows and the welcome extends forward into time for others.
2010 UPDATE: During a recent visit to the cache I was pleased to see that the site is now marked with 'official' trail signage and trail markers off of the AT. There is now an AT-style mailbox with a log book for visitors to sign. I suspect that some of the visitors are not aware that there's also a geocache at the site. Many more visitors now visit the place and the cairn has grown. Since the way to the high point has now been marked it would probably be best to use the trail rather than bushwhack. This would minimize the environmental impact of increased visits to the site.
As always...please use caution when looking through rocky places during warm weather. Snakes could be in this or any other rocky area along the AT or elsewhere in the mountains.
Watch your step, it's rocky up there! Good luck!
Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
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