Highpointers Club: Why hikers chase all 50 state highpoints
Highpointing turns travel across the U.S. into a clear, finishable quest: reaching the highest point in every state, from towering mountains to surprising low-elevation markers. The Highpointers Club brings people together around that goal, treating place
Audio is streamed directly from the publisher (media.transistor.fm) as published in their RSS feed. Play Podcasts does not host this file. Rights-holders can request removal through the copyright & takedown page.
Show Notes
Highpointing is a niche travel-and-hiking pursuit with a simple rule: visit the highest point in every U.S. state, whether it’s a major summit or a modest marker. CBS News follows the Highpointers Club and a recent gathering of about 180 members in Bishop, California, near Mt. Whitney, the tallest mountain in the contiguous United States at 14,505 feet. Club president Shannon Brumund describes a community that celebrates everything from extremely difficult peaks to family-friendly stops. The reporting also shows how the challenge isn’t always physical: Illinois’ Charles Mound sits on private land, with access allowed only four weekends a year. For many, finishing all 50 takes a lifetime, though Lucy Westlake completed them in 2021 at age 17.
Topics Covered
- 📰 What the Highpointers Club is and why members chase all 50 state highpoints
- 🔬 Mt. Whitney’s 14,505-foot climb versus low-elevation highpoints like Florida’s Britton Hill
- 🗺️ Logistics and access challenges, including private-land rules at Illinois’ Charles Mound
- 👥 The community side of conventions and shared traditions on the trail
- 🏔️ Milestones and records, including Lucy Westlake’s 2021 completion at age 17
Neural Newscast is AI-assisted, human reviewed. View our AI Transparency Policy at NeuralNewscast.com.
- (00:00) - Introduction
- (00:35) - Highpointing explained: the Highpointers Club and Mt. Whitney
- (01:26) - The hidden challenge: access, logistics, and Charles Mound
- (01:52) - Conclusion