| High Point | |
|---|---|
High Point Monument and Lake Marcia |
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| Elevation | 1,803 ft (550 m) NGVD 29[1] |
| Prominence | 883 ft (269 m) [1] |
| Listing | U.S. state high point |
| Location | |
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High Point
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| Range | Kittatinny Mountains, Appalachians |
| Coordinates | [2] |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | A paved 2-lane roadway ascends directly to the summit |
High Point, in the northwestern part of New Jersey in Montague, Sussex County in the Skylands Region of New Jersey, is the highest elevation in the state at 1,803 feet (550 m). It is southeast of Port Jervis, New York. High Point is the highest peak of the Kittatinny Mountains.
At the peak is the High Point Monument, a 220-foot (67 m) tower, built in 1930 to commemorate the war dead. Three states can be seen from the top: New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania.
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The mountain is in the 14,193 acre (57 km²) High Point State Park. Route 23 skirts the park and carries visitors from the New Jersey suburbs and from points in New York State. The park is administered by the New Jersey Division of Parks and Forestry.
Entrance fees are only charged from Memorial Day weekend to Labor Day: $ 5.00 on weekdays and $10.00 on weekends[update].[3]
The land for High Point State Park, donated by Colonel Anthony R. and Susie Dryden Kuser of Bernardsville, New Jersey, was dedicated as a park in 1923. The pleasant landscaping was designed by the Olmsted Brothers of Boston, a prominent landscape architectural firm of that time. The brothers were the sons of Frederick Law Olmsted, who designed Central Park.
To the south the Appalachian Trail follows a rocky ridge which offers many scenic views of the valleys and mountains surrounding the area. To the north, the trail drops off the ridge through hemlock gorges into former agricultural fields with a view of the surrounding countryside and the High Point Monument in the distance.
Plans had been made to close the park as of July 1, 2008 under Gov. Jon Corzine's budget plan for 2009. Veterans groups, who have held an annual memorial at the site, expressed their opposition to the proposal, which was ultimately removed from the final budget.[4]
High Point, New Jersey was the host "highpoint" of the 2009 Highpointers Convention.[5]
The Monument on High Point was built by Kuyser to honor war veterans. Master mason Michael Maddaluna began construction of the 220 foot (67 m) tower – which has a base which is 34 square feet (3.2 square meters) – in 1928 and completed it in 1930. The outside is made of New Hampshire granite and also Shawangunk quartz. There are four small windows through which observers have a view of the ridges of the Pocono Mountains toward the west, the Catskill Mountains to the north and the Wallkill River Valley in the southeast. The Monument is an obelisk monument similar to other war monuments, such as the one on Bunker Hill in Massachusetts.
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