Ascent of Dillon County High Point on 2014-10-22| Date: | Wednesday, October 22, 2014 | | Ascent Type: | Successful Summit Attained | | Motorized Transport to Trailhead: | Car | | Peak: | Dillon County High Point | | Location: | USA-South Carolina | | Elevation: | 180 ft / 54 m |
Ascent Trip ReportWhen I first visited here in 2013, I saw that the land was posted No Trespassing by Coastal Timberlands Company, phone 252-536-6219. Coastal leases the land to a local hunting club. I called Coastal, and the rep suggested I ask the hunters through Arnie at awebster@esab.com. (ESAB is a welding supply company in nearby Bennettsville SC.) I never heard back from Arnie and took that as tacit permission. Dillon was the last county I needed to complete SC, and I was pumped up and willing to take my chances. Arnie, if you read this report, you have my thanks and/or apologies!
I parked on Steed Road on the NC side of the state line (it's Raemont Road on the SC side) and walked past the gate. The route is on sandy roads that are obvious on satellite photos. Walk west 0.2 miles and turn right at a T. Follow this road as it winds north, west, and north again before paralleling the state line. One mile from the trailhead, you will pass through a cleared area where Fred Lobdell found a woods road toward the summit. His route is now overgrown, but it's easy enough to bushwhack west through the pines. The HP was a little farther than I expected but eventually you'll find a distinct hill that rises 15-20 feet on a bluff north of the Little Pee Dee River.
Much of the timber on the NC side has been recently harvested, so you are in the open more than you might expect. At one point you pass 200 yards behind a plantation house, so use discretion if you don't have permission. Elsewhere, it's a good idea to wear hunter orange. I saw no signs of recent hunting, though there were fresh tracks--deer and trucks--on the sandy road.
Satellite photos show a slightly shorter route directly west from Steed Road and north of the plantation. However, this gate is also posted, and the area has been clear-cut, so I wouldn't recommend it.
Dillon was my 46th and final SC county high point. I completed the state just a few hours after Charlie Zerphey finished in Lancaster. |
| Summary Total Data | | Total Elevation Gain: | 40 ft / 12 m | | Round-Trip Distance: | 2.5 mi / 4 km | | Route: | logging roads | | Trailhead: | Steed Road 140 ft / 42 m | | Quality: | 4 (on a subjective 1-10 scale) | | Route Conditions: | Road Hike, Open Country, Bushwhack | | Ascent Statistics | | Time: | 22 Minutes | | Descent Statistics | | Time: | 22 Minutes |
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