There is no official trail to the top. Our guess as to the best route was validated as we found evidence of other feet having passed this way before. The going was steep and slow but, by just keeping at it, soon we were at the top.
There was a false summit and we actually had to do some scary (for me) scrambling . . .
. . . and technical climbing to get to the actual summit.
Here is the view north overlooking Carson pass. You can see the top of the final climb of the Death Ride.
To the South there is a very deep valley.
Off there in the East somewhere is Turtle Rock Park, the start and finish of the Death Ride.
But we could not stay long at the summit. We had other things to do. The tricky part of this whole exercise was getting down safely.
It would be so easy, and a terrible shame, to injure oneself the day before the big ride.
Here I am, safely on a real trail again, ready for the trek back to the car.