This was the first of four state highpoints that I did during a four day tour during Memorial Day weekend, 1996. However, I learned an important lesson: the High Plains is NOT the place to visit this time of year. I had constant fog and storms the whole time, including a monster down near the Oklahoma panhandle that spawned some twisters, although I didn't see any. While I was successful on all four state highpoints, the lack of views and the grim weather was somewhat of a downer.

I arrived in Colorado Springs around noon and picked up my rental car, then proceeded north up Interstate-25 toward the Wyoming line and Cheyenne for some souvenir shopping. From Cheyenne, it was east along Interstate-80 to Pine Bluff, a small town on the Wyoming-Nebraska line, and a stop at the Subway for a sandwich. While in Colorado and in Cheyenne, the sky was blue but with puffy "wet" clouds that progressively thickened as I headed east toward the Nebraska highpoint. By the time I arrived at Pine Bluff, a tornado warning was in effect for the northeast portion of Colorado, and the sky was quite dark and ominous. I was disappointed, but after some thought, I decided to make an attempt for the Nebraska highpoint anyway.

I followed the series of dirt roads as described in Holmes' book and found the highpoint with no difficulty. The weather remained unstable but thus far I had no problems. The highpoint itself is pastureland and is decorated with a stone marker and a register. After a few minutes admiring the view, I strolled back to my car and began the drive out. I followed the dirt roads up toward the town of Kimball. The bad weather to my south prompted me to make a hasty decision and head north to South Dakota and make a try for Harney Peak. At least the weather seemed a bit less unsettled that way. The rest of the day was spent traveling up the west side of Nebraska through Scotts Bluff and Chadron and on into South Dakota, where I spent the night in Hot Springs.