From the start at Turtle Rock Park (on CA 89 near Markleeville), riders head north on CA 89 and turn onto Diamond Valley Rd. This is a beautiful rolling road with great views of the foothills. Riders descend into the Carson Valley and take Foothill Road along its perimeter to the base of the first climb: Kingsbury grade. This stretch gives everyone a good warm up before the climbing begins. Kingsbury grade is the perfect pass to begin the ride because it offers very wide shoulders, a steady easy grade all the way to the top, and very little wind in the morning. It's broad sweeping turns give riders an awesome view of the Carson Valley and the Pinenut Mountains and a fun descent. Watch out for cars on this sometimes busy grade! After reaching the summit and enjoying a well- earned descent back down Kingsbury grade, riders head back north on Foothill and turn right on Emigrant Trail. This short and easy climb doesn't count as a pass, but it's a good warmup for the pass to come. Continuing from Emigrant trail, riders pass through the historic town of Woodfords and up scenic Woodfords Canyon, following the route of the Pony Express trail. Turning right at Picketts Junction, riders will complete a climb to the summit of Luther Pass. Descending Luther pass back into Hope Valley, riders will turn right, and begin their ascent of Carson Pass taking in views of Red Lake and high alpine terrain. After Carson Pass, riders will enjoy the fun descent back down into Hope Valley, turning right onto Blue Lakes Road--one of the best kept secrets in all of Alpine County. Blue Lakes Road will take riders over a series of climbs and through valleys with breathtaking scenery. A little bit of climbing and a rolling descent takes riders back out to Hope Valley and then down Woodfords Canyon. Turning right towards Markleeville brings riders back to the start where lunch awaits. After lunch, the route continues through Markleeville on CA 89. Continuing on to CA 4, riders will begin the beautiful climb of the heavily forested Ebbetts Pass. After completing the climb of Ebbetts East, riders descend and then climb the west side of Ebbetts and then return to the intersection of CA 89 and CA 4 after a technical descent. Turning right onto CA 89, riders start up the west side of Monitor Pass. This climb offers a few challenging steep grades and sweeping views of alpine meadows and Lake Heenan. A rest stop at the top of the pass marks completion of the second-to-last pass of the day. The descent to Topaz on the east side of Monitor is a thrill. The road surface is excellent, the grade is sweet, and the turns are fun. Riders must observe turn around times and cut-offs. Monitor East is the last pass of the day! The climb is long but the grade is steady and this climb is a pleasure. Like the east of Monitor, the descent on the west side is fun, but caution is required. From the base of Monitor riders return to the start through the Carson River Canyon on CA 89.

The start/finish is near Markleeville, CA which is about 1 hour south of Reno (NV), 2 hours east of Sacramento (CA), and 3.5 hours east of San Francisco (CA).

https://www.altaalpina.org/challenge/