A B737 CREW BECOME CONFUSED DURING DEP FROM ONT EXCEEDING A HOLD DOWN ALT AND QUESTIONING THE TRACK THEY ARE TO FLY.

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WE DEPARTED ONT WITH THE FO FLYING. AS WE CLBED OUT; WE NEARED THE POINT OF INTERCEPTING THE RADIAL TO THE POM VOR. I REMINDED THE FO OF THE TURN; BUT HE REMINDED ME THAT THE CLRNC WAS 'RWY HDG;' NOT FROM TWR; BUT FROM CLRNC. IN HOPES OF ELIMINATING MORE CONFUSION; I CALLED DEP TO CLARIFY THAT HE WANTED US TO INTERCEPT INBOUND TOWARD THE VOR AND PROCEED VIA THE DEP. HE INFORMED ME THAT WE HAD MISSED THE NORMAL 'HOLD-DOWN' ALT. AT THIS POINT I REALIZED THAT I MUST HAVE NOT BACKED UP THE FO WHEN HE READ THE CLRNC TO ME; AS I HAD LOOKED AT THE DEP; BUT I DID NOT QUESTION THE HIGHER THAN NORMAL ALT. DEP QUESTIONED OUR CONFUSION AND I TOLD HIM THAT I MUST HAVE MADE AN ERROR AND ASKED IF HE HAD ALTERNATE INSTRUCTIONS FOR US. HE GAVE US A NEW HDG (AND I THINK A NEW ALT) TO JOIN THE DEP. IN ANALYZING THIS OVER AND OVER; WE NOTICED THAT THE DEP FROM ONT IS NOT AS CLR AS OTHER DEPS; SPECIFICALLY TO OUR DEST CITY; AS TO DIRECT US TO FLY A HDG TO INTERCEPT; VERSUS FLY A HDG AND EXPECT VECTORS TO DEP. I NEED TO BE REMINDED FREQUENTLY.