North Face

The easiest way up the Cake, and one of the easiest climbs in the Sandias. A nice summit with forgettable climbing; rated 5.3 in the old Hill guide, 5.4 in the new Schein guide.

From the north-west side of the Cake, scramble up to the notch between the Cake & the Candle. Step to the tower to the right (the Cake), and start up its North Face. Climb a flake, stem into a chimney and onto a ledge with 2 really old bolts. From here, work right toward the right edge of the cliff, then angle back up and left to the top of the tower. Or, from the ledge, you can climb directly up some hand cracks which look nice but pass some scary loose blocks (this was more like 5.6 and felt harder since I was trying not to touch anything).

Standard gear to 3". Rap off the slung blocks at the top 90' back to the ground.