road into the mouth of Long John Canyon and the short backpack up to the spring at the canyon head, where the party spend a cold night. Early the next day they followed an old miners' trail up to a cabin and spring near the crest, then climbed north to the 10,668 foot summit. The view across Owens Valley to the snowy Sierra crest was stupendous. All 12 who made the trip talked enthusiastically about the new desert peaks group. Three weeks later Pearl Harbor was bombed and desert peaking had to take a back seat for the war's duration. With war's end, all the pent-up energies of Chester and his small band of desert enthusiasts burst out in renewed activity. The first post-war scheduled outing was a climb of Waucoba Peak on November 10-12, 1945, led by Niles Werner and James Tow, announced in the chapter schedule with the comment that "the Desert Peaks Section comes to life again". Niles qualified for membership on this, his seventh desert peak. He was the first after Chester Versteeg to qualify for the DPS emblem. (He had to wait until after Parker Severson designed it in 1947 to get it.) Chester made a formal occasion of the event, with a crown for Niles and appropriate speeches. Louise earned her emblem a short time later. The Desert Peaks Section was formally organized in November 1945, and desert trips boomed in popularity. Niles and Louise played a leading role in the growth of the section and the expansion of the desert area covered from the original trans-Sierra ranges to mountains all over the Southwest and into Baja California. Louise made the acquaintance of Edward "Bud" Bernhard of Coronado and in 1950 helped to organize an attempt on El Picacho del Diablo, the crown of Baja California. They approached the mountain from the west, via the Meling Ranch, and failed in their first attempt. They tried again in 1951 and reached the difficult summit in an exhausting 22-hour day from the San Pedro Martir plateau down into the head of Canyon Diablo, up the peak and down into the canyon again, and back up to the plateau. In 1955 Bud Bernard, Louise, along with DPSers Bill and Margie Henderson and two of Bud's San Diego friends, pioneered the route up "Big Picacho" from the east, via Canyon Diablo - the route that is generally used today. Niles Werner, 75 years of age, died a few weeks after a train accident in Mexico in 1965. Louis carried on her climbing activities into recent years, ascending San Gorgonio twice at the age of 80, trekking in the Himalaya, and scrambling up Blue Bottle in Baja California at the age of 84. Nowadays, approaching 89, she walks a mile or two every day from her Artesia retirement home. She is truly an amazing lady, and a real delight to have as a friend. Louise is looking forward to attending the next DPS banquet. All of you will have the pleasure of meeting this grand lady of the DPS.

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