Driskill Mountain - State High Point, LA

The most scenic aspect of this "highpointer" hike may well be the grave yard at the Presbyterian church where you park at the trailhead. Not to say that the stroll through the dense hardwoods winding up to the top of the mountain is not pleasant, but it seems to compel you to just want to get there and get it over with... perhaps because of all the signs along the way posted by the private landowners (over whose land you are crossing) noting and crediting about the names of the owners, and generally distracting from the experiece of being out and away.


This 535' peak is one of the lowest high points in the nation... yet still attracts a stream of annual visitors. The founder of the highpointers club supposedly had his ashes scattered over Mt. Driskill, so there must be a substantial general appeal for many hikers.It was interesting that on our visit, we had previously that week hiked the highpoints in both Missouri and Arkansas, both thousands of feet higher, yet this hike did require the greater effort and had more feet of elevation gain than those other two. (Missouri was something of a joke with a paved sidewalk going to the summit, with probably about 12 feet of total gain!).

History: As Don Holmes states, "Driskill Mountain was named for James Christopher 'Grancer' Driskill (1817-1901), who settled in the farm and timber land surrounding the mountain in the late 1830s after moving from Macon, Georgia. Eventually, Mr. Driskill owned 960 acres in the area. In 1874 he donated two acres of land for what has become the Mount Zion Presbyterian Church and the Driskill Memorial Cemetary. Many of Grancer Driskill's descendants still live near Driskill Mountain."

Miscellaneous Info: Driskill Mountain is the highest point of Bienville Parish and is, in fact, the only area in the state where land higher than 500ft can be found. The Mt. Zion Presbyterian Church is located close to the saddle separating Driskill from the only other 500ft summit in Louisiana, Gentry Hill. This 160m (524ft) point only has a 33m (109ft) prominence, but is a nice add-on to a hike up Driskill Mountain.

2009-11-29 imike