Starting along an old dirt road.Wooden posts at the historic boundary of Joshua Tree National Monument (before it became a national park in 1994).Dropping into the wash on the left.Starting up a Class 2 chute.Aiming for the notch on the right.Class 3 obstacle.View back from the notch.View back.Aqua Benchmark comes into view.Scattered pinyon pines are found within the shady canyons.Starting up Aqua Benchmark's northwest slope.View back from Aqua Benchmark's north slope.Approaching Aqua Benchmark's summit.Aqua Benchmark summit. View toward Dyadic Point.Descending Aqua Benchmark's south slope toward Spectre Peak.Arriving at the saddle between Aqua Benchmark and Spectre Peak.A Class 2 chute to the base of Spectre Peak.Class 3 slabs on Spectre Peak's east face.View northwest.Spectre Peak summit. View northeast toward Aqua Benchmark (left) and Dyadic Point (right).View east toward Dyadic Point and the southern reaches of the Coxcomb Range.View south toward Pinto Basin.Descending Spectre Peak's east slope en route to Dyadic Point.View back up Spectre Peak's east slope.Climbing east toward Dyadic Point.Pocketed Class 3 section.A 10-foot, Class 4 downclimb.View back at the downclimb (left). The route continues past the tree on the right.Large choke stone, surmounted via an awkward stemming move.From a closed contour on the topo erroneously labeled "Dyadic Point", view of remaining ridgeline to the obviously higher true summit.Descending a ramp to bypass an intervening prominence.From the bottom of the ramp, starting up this chute to the climber's right.View through a notch at the base of Dyadic Point.My first attempt at gaining Dyadic Peak's north ridge is this Class 5 lieback slab. There's an unnerving, exposed gap at the top. Unwilling to make the leap, I downclimbed the slab and searched for another route.Class 5 chimney, so narrow I ditched my backpack in order to fit inside. (The following several photos were taken with my phone). For reference, the aforementioned lieback slab is on the far left.Class 3 above the chimney (behind the dead bush).Gaining the ridge. From here, I climbed the slabs on the right to avoid the exposure on the left (north) side of the ridge.1-foot wide ledge on the south side of the ridge. It can be bypassed by dropping down to the right.View back across the ledge. (Notice the exposure on the left.) From here, it's a short and straightforward Class 2 scramble to the summit.Dyadic Point summit. View northwest toward Aqua Benchmark.View south.To avoid downclimbing the slabs, I returned via the north side of the ridge. View back.View back across an exposed leap used to rejoin my ascent route.After retrieving by backpack, I returned to the saddle between Spectre Peak and Dyadic Point.View back toward Dyadic Point.Descending a northerly drainage to the saddle below all three peaks.View back up the drainage.From the saddle, starting down northeasterly drainage that serves as the primary DPS route to Spectre Peak.Some tedious, bouldery terrain.View back.View southeast as the drainage merges with a major wash.Turning left toward minor saddle to the northwest.Class 2 to the saddle.From the saddle, view back along a use trail.Following a northwestern drainage.Some standing water inside a (possible) mortero.Class 2 boulder-hopping.Rejoining the old road.Final view back toward the Coxcomb Mountains.
