What Is the Highest Point on Bainbridge Island?

By Alli Schuchman

It’s not hard to find a hill on the rock. Still, many an islander has wondered which peak gets the prize for its uppermost elevation. If you suggest that Paper & Leaf is the highest, you win the award for humor, but you’d be wrong. If you guessed the 400-feet–above-sea-level Gazzam Lake Hill, you’d be in good company. But you’d still be wrong.

Don’t feel bad though, even the United States Geological Survey was incorrect until LIDAR (shorthand for Light Imaging, Detection and Ranging) set the record straight. It determined that the original mapping of the island was several contours short on the one and only (drumroll, please) Toe Jam Hill. The infamous rise beckons to grinding cyclists and crushing runners alike— no surprise since its lung-busting summit is at least 25 feet higher than Gazzam’s. So whether you’re looking for the stiffest workout or scoping a “just-in-case seek higher ground” kind of spot, now you know.

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