Wet-Not and Brushy-Brown-Bumps, Two DPS Summits

OK, this is really about Dry Mountain and Sandy Point, in Death Valley. Initially I viewed these as boring slogs... but surprise, surprise, the DPS summits often hold secrets. Even the DPS guide describes Sandy Point as "boring," yet I found a special mystery in a day of pleasant winds and highly-varied geolgy.

Harlan W S
March 27-28, 2013

Dry involved at least 5900' of accumulated elevation gain, and 14 miles. I finished the trip in 8h 24m, including a 30 minute stay on top, and at least 30 muntes lost to two "medical" situations.	Route up Dry, as seen from the SE. After cresting the initial ridge, there is a drop over 700', then a reclimb to the real summit.	Goggle Earth view form the NE. I came down the great ridge route pioneered by Kathy Wing.
I got a late start -- 6:36AM-- and the sun soon lit up the ridge E of Dry Mt.	Eventually the wash becomes distinct and widens.	Briefly the route gets interesting. Keeping it class 2 depends on picking the correct branches of the wash, often denoted (after you have taken a branch!) by small cairns.

OK, this was a wrong turn; steep crumbly limestone. I should have stayed L.	Finally I hit the 1st ridge; view E to Tin Mountain.	Now a view W, where I must drop over 700' to start the final climb to the real peak.
Heading W on the ridge to the real peak.	View W, with the Sierra beyond.
The large box contains emergecy supplies.
If you travel a bit W, the views are more dramatic near the plateau edge.

Views to NW.		On descent, view of the ridge down.
View E, from near lowpoint between summit and east ridge. I decide to head up the wash (I took the ridge at L before).	Tin Mt. again.
Now I'm heading SE down the ridge route found by Kathy W.		View of Tin.
	The first "medical" emergency. This 1" cactus spine found a gap in my outer sole, and went 1/4" into the bottom of my foot. I had to put a flat stone in the boot to press the spine back out, then finaly found a way to pull it out from the shoe bottom, much as I would extract a nail from a board.	Next, a limestone boulder with razor-sharp sliceous fragments hit my knee, and one of the fragments embedded. I couldn't stop the boulder because my hands were stuck in trekking pole loops.
Joshua tree blooms.	Next day I went to Sandy Point. Except for an early section through a scratchy, brushy wash (which I avoided on descent), I found this to be a pleasant trip.	Google Earth synthetic, view from SSW.
Google Earth synthetic, view from NNW.	Yep, there's the summit somewhere over there. The route is a long series of ridge walks, with many drops in saddles 10' to 150' deep.


	The top is nearer...	View, mainly SW, from top; Eureka sand dunes are visible in valley.
SSW to Tin and Dry.	Down to the sand dunes.

		While it is class 1, in the sense that a confident person never need put down his/her hands, there are places of careful walking on narrow paths atop cliffs.