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Success Summit
This is a local tourist loop
very close to Ely. Much of this is paved but I
took a mountain bike anyway.
Approaches From South. South of Ely, a paved road
goes east to Cave Lake State Park. The profile
starts on a low point on this road. Pavement ends
as you exit the park to the north. It climbs in
switchbacks to a low saddle between the main range
of the Schell Creek Range and a lower set of
foothills. The views from the top are limited to
the drainage that you just came up. Many of the campsites next to the road have a "no
trespassing private property sign". Apparently you
can reserve a space with a local real estate mogul
who has bought up much of the campable land next
to the road. But between these campsites, there
are also some parcels of land under National
Forest control.  From North. There are no switchbacks on
this side, and also fewer "private-no trespassing"
campsites. After a fast descent the road exits the
aspen forest, and for the first time you see the
actual Schell Creek Range to the east. It is a set
of long baquette shaped mountains, with barely a
peak in it, even though the two highest peaks,
North Schell Peak and South Schell Peak, should
both be visible from here. At the turnoff to the NF guard station, the road
becomes a luxurious paved affair, the Duck Creek
Highway. I didn't see any ducks or cars during my
descent. Finally the road turns west, trees become
a thing of the past and the road heads towards
what seems like a gigantic set of tire tracks at
the horizon - the map says it's the Egan Range  Dayride (<FR106
Devil's Dance Floor | Cooper Canyon
s(u) >)
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