Mitchell Hollow, and the hill that made cars fly

Mitchell Hollow is a fold in the ground on the western side of Highland, crossed by 10400 North at about 6500 West on a culvert. Mitchell Hollow Park sits a little south of that crossing at 6400 West 10250 North, and the city's second trailhead onto the paved bench corridor is listed separately at 6450 West 10400 North. All three are within a few hundred yards of each other and the fold in the ground is visible from the road.

The hill where 10400 North crosses Mitchell Hollow at about 6500 West. The road runs over a culvert there and the transition from the hollow to the flat ground either side is abrupt rather than graded. While the road was gravel and the traffic was horse drawn that was no problem. The road was paved in 1947, speeds rose, and drivers began taking it deliberately: eastbound the crest threw a car into the air, and westbound it hid whatever was on the far side.

Because that was one of the nicknames for the hill at 10400 North. The city's own account records the spot being variously known as the thrill hill, the Highland dip, the Highland bump, Highland Whoopee, Whoopee Hill and the Highland Fling. When Highland wanted a name for its annual celebration, the last of those was already in local use and it doubled neatly as the name of a Scottish dance, which suited a town whose own name is traditionally credited to Scottish settlers.

A covered reservable pavilion, a playground, restrooms, a bookable baseball diamond, and a paved loop with open field, plus parking and Highland's second Murdock Canal Trail trailhead a short distance north. Some listings name more than is actually here, so go by the city's own facility page. Park hours are seven in the morning to nine at night daily, and the ball diamond runs Monday to Saturday within those hours.

Not from a public tap. Highland City carries a standing note that the spigot at this park is unavailable for public use because of water pressure safety concerns, which is easy to miss when booking a pavilion for a summer afternoon. Restrooms are on site, but bring drinking water rather than assume a tap. If you are renting the ball diamond, note separately that the city splits the portable toilet servicing cost among the groups using the field rather than folding it into the hourly rate.

You book it through the city's own reservation system, with a half day or a full day rate and separate resident and non-resident pricing. Half days run from eight until two or from three until nine, and a full day runs from eight until nine. The reservation covers the pavilion only, so the rest of the park stays open to everyone while it is booked, and all bookings sit under the city's quiet hours from ten at night.

Yes, through the city's own reservation system, priced by the hour for practices and at a higher hourly rate for games, competitions or clinics, with a day rate for a full day. Requests must go in at least seven days ahead and submitting one does not guarantee approval. The field is open Monday to Saturday from seven in the morning to nine at night and is closed on Sunday.

Yes, and it is one of two in Highland, which no other city on the route has. The trailhead is listed at 6450 West 10400 North with parking, restrooms and lighting, and the other is at Highland Glen Park about two and a half miles east. That pairing lets you ride between two proper trailheads inside one city. The corridor itself, its length, the enclosed aqueduct beneath it, its underpasses and its rules, is shared by seven cities and is covered on the Murdock Canal Trail page.

The ground itself, which is the honest answer. The road at 10400 North is an ordinary suburban street today and the fold it crosses is still perfectly obvious from the car, which is what most people come to look at once they know the story. Beyond that there is a neighborhood park at 6400 West 10250 North and a trailhead onto seventeen paved miles of bench corridor. It is a twenty minute stop on a drive across the city rather than an afternoon in itself.