After hiking East Ord Mountain earlier in the day, I set my sights on Ord Mountain, the range high point. From Lucerne Valley, I drove north on Camp Rock Road, keeping left at the junction with Troy Road. Five miles past the junction I turned left onto Pipe Line Road, where I encountered an obstacle in the road.
It was a desert tortoise! For ten minutes, I patiently waited for him to move out of harm's way. When threatened, desert tortoises may void their bladders to deter potential predators, leading to death by dehydration. Therefore, it is important to refrain from handling these animals. Refer to this video by the National Park Service on the matter. Sadly, the Mojave desert tortoise population has fallen 90% since the 1980s largely due to habitat loss from human development.
I continued along Pipe Line Road for a couple miles before reaching a very steep and sandy hill that required 4WD and plenty of torque to climb. (It was a little sketchy, so I recommend bypassing Pipe Line Road altogether and staying on Camp Rock Road until it intersects with Ord Mountain Road to the north.) After some white-knuckled driving, I eventually reached Ord Mountain Road, where I turned left onto a service road. I followed this road south for another 0.8 miles and parked at a large pullout near a locked gate, where I was greeted by a party of OHVers.
