Ord Mountain, East Ord Mountain, Lucerne Benchmark

1971

By: Wally Henry

none

At 8:10 Saturday morning a caravan of DPSers left the Lucerne Valley shopping center just as Bob Herlihy was reaching for a six-pack to sustain him through the weekend. Bob left the six-pack and joined the 38 people who were on their way to climb Lucerne BM (4419). On the summit Bob was told that he had been rushed away from his purchase to climb a peak that not only wasn't on the list but wasn't even scheduled. In the afternoon the group climbed Ord Mountain (6309) which is also not on the list. Good weather and good friends as well as a cheery fire helped Bob make it through an otherwise stark Saturday night.

At 7:20 Sunday morning the shout of "ten minutes" roared through the camp. The group had now dwindled to 29 gung-ho hikers off to climb their third unlisted peak of the weekend, East Ord Mountain (6120). The route that led up a canyon southwest of the summit involved some rock scrambling. The leaders stopped the group short of a section that involved about 60 vertical feet of difficult third class rock and then suggested an alternate route. Those DPSers, to a man, rejected any thought of such a thing and in a short time they were sitting on the summit pleased with their success in overcoming the difficulty.

Only 8 people tried to climb (or even find) the Sidewinder BM (5272). This lack of faith in the mapless leaders was well founded as the peak was never reached. However, the disappointment of missing the peak and the unpleasantness of getting stuck in the sandy road were washed away by a few cold ones and a good dinner at Little Italy, Apple Valley's friendly local pub.


Detailed information for visiting one or more peaks mentioned in this article can be found in the
Desert Peak Section Road and Peak Guides

DPS Archives Index | Desert Peaks Section