Distance

no info yet

Elevation

3,500 ft start

Vertical

2,900 ft gain

Time

no info yet

3/9/19 was a crazy, tiring, awesome day! I parked my car at the junction of Camp Rock Rd and the Powerline Road (I do not have 4WD!) I hiked up BLM 6657, bore right on 6659, and hiked up towards the gully that would lead me near the summit block of East Ord. Before I made it to my cross-country route, I had to leave the road and bypass a rogue feral bull as to not upset him. He stared me down as I stayed 200' minimum away along the wash that parallels the road. I then rejoined the road when I felt it was safe and followed it to my ccross-country departure. I had made a class 2 gully climb northbound up, with much boulder hopping and some very minor bushwhacking (small, gentle twiggy shrubs) to a saddle to the west of East Ord Mountain's 6,168' summit block, scrambled up the block and signed in at the register. The summit block looks really intimidating, but careful planning will find a path of least resistance and a class-2 climb! On East Ord's summit, I then had my eye to the north at the end of the ridge that radiates from East Ord Mountain's north side. I scrambled down from East Ord's high point, and headed north by northwest down a little and tried to sidehill the outcrop-laced ridge leading north towards 6010. I had to make several class-2 moves and even a brief class-3 move as I ended up on a steep rock ledge, and had to gently work my way down to slightly easier terrain trying to get to the saddle just south of the plateau whose high point was Peak 6010 at the far north end of it. The terrain was much easier as I gained the plateau and made one last class-2 scramble up the small rocky mound of the peak. Interestingly I had mistaken Peak 6010 as Peak 6068, where Google Earth places East Ord's summit. So my goal was actually 6068, but I misidentified it. I realized that I was on 6010 instead of 6068 after I got back home and looked on Google Earth to review my day! Peak 6068 is actually to the northwest of 6168 along the summit ridge plateau of 6168, and seems to be easier to reach, as getting to 6010 took quite a bit of effort. Overall, despite a navigational error in that respect, I made it to a peak even more remote that 6068 and East Ord's 6,168' high point! My descent was down the ridge west of the gully I took up, but had to return to the same gully to avoid class-3 and class-4 canyoneering! After I rejoined BLM 6659, it was a routine return to my car! All in all, my first true desert peak was a great exercise in route finding and cross-country travel as after leaving the road, it is all cross-country! The weather was perfect, too. It was nice, sunny, and cool, and rather brisk and cold on both summits! Despite the error of not locating Peak 6068, route finding to and from was not too hard as I had a good sense of where I was by paying attention to the terrain. Elevation Gain was roughly 2800'-3000' combining both peaks and starting at a lower elevation by Camp Rock Rd.

Route to summit

None

loop
Obstacles

routefinding, bushwhacking, no water source, rockfall/loose rock

Key gear

no info yet

Other peaks climbed on this trip