Only one real route on this area, but a nice one for the beginning leader or if you wanna take some newbies out "trad-climbin"! Mellow, low angle route taking you up two pitches on high quality rock.
To get there, hike up lower LaCueva canyon, finding Bathtub falls (this is a short fall you will come across about 20 minutes up the canyon). There are giant boulders all over the area stemming from recent rockfall. From Bathtub falls look north and you will see the low angled flake that is the climb you are looking for. The double crack leading to a small roof is quite obvious.
The Classics
Mountain Project's determination of some of the classic, most popular, highest rated routes for Flake n' Bake:
Nice, mellow, south facing route (gets plenty of sun in winter) to take aspiring leaders or new climbers on. Looking up you will see two obvious wavy cracks heading up to a roof. If you have more time to kill you can even set up a top rope and choose one of the four variations of the first pitch (crack 1, crack 2, slab only, or left facing dihedral crack.)Pitch 1 (5.5)Pick either crack and climb up through the roof and to the bolt anchors.Pitch 2 (5.4)Traverse to the right and follow the crack ...[more]Browse More Classics in NM
Since you're up there anyway... There's a pretty cool route that follows the arete on the right side corner of the F&B slab. It starts with tricky face climbing proteced with a bolt and then goes into easy and good finger/hand cracks. Then just layback the easy arete to the F&B anchor. Very easy on the arete but with fun movement and great position. And a good TR if you make sure to place some directionals on top.
Climbing in the Flake n' Bake area can be extended both below and above to make a 3 or 4 pitch climb.
Below pitch 1 of the route Flake n' Bake is a run-out lead that starts on a shallow angled slab and initially follows an intermittent crack trending to climber's left and then up and back right (Slab Happy, 5.3). Paralleling that is a straight-up top-rope var (The Slab, 5.7). Both end at the ample ledge with bolted anchor ("Lunch Ledge") at the base of Flake and Bake route.
Above, or rather, splitting off pitch 2 of the route Flake n' Bake are a couple short routes: either finish up a steeper, obvious, slightly right-trending, hand-crack (In A Jam, 5.7); or face climb (top rope, 5.8) just to the left of and paralleling In A Jam.
These additional route names and ratings come from Barry and Rita Loucks' guide. They may warrant separate route pages instead of this comment - feel free if inclined.
The first pitch is pretty easy with good pro to 2 bolts with screw links on a nice ledge (assuming the 2 bolts and screw links are not the actual start of the climb). 2nd pitch starts decent for about 12 feet, then moves to a small arete/dihedral, with greasy feet (looks like water flows down it pretty regularly) that, IMO, is not a 5.5. The feet are slick and the hands are marginal for about 10 feet. Once you get past the arete to the actual flake it gets much better. After the Flake, the moves to get over the bulge are somewhat thin. Top of second pitch has 2 bolts with chains, and a third button bolt that is a bit loose. There is another pitch above this one that goes to 2 bolts with chains. 2 ropes on rappel will get you back to the ledge.
Not really a fan of slabs which is truly my gripe with the rating. Coming from sport to trad, it's fine, but if I was 'climbing inexperienced' I wouldn't want this to be my first trad lead. Slabs can be uncomfortable, have poor resting points, and coupled with 'finding' gear placements can make for a shitty experience.
My impression is that a certain technique (not lieback) in the section just below the flake makes the route Flake n' Bake about 5.5; even so, 5.5 may be a little "old school".
"The first pitch is pretty easy with good pro to 2 bolts with screw links on a nice ledge (assuming the 2 bolts and screw links are not the actual start of the climb)."
Bryan, the actual start of the route Flake n' Bake is indeed at the 2 bolts with screw links; the ledge there is called Lunch Ledge by at least one guide. There are several other named parallel pitches that start below Lunch Ledge. This is all based on the Loucks' guide "Climbers Guide to the Lower Sandias", 3rd Ed, copyright 1994 (2nd Ed, 1989; 1st Ed, 1986?). Looks like used copies of the guide are still out there being sold (e.g., Amazon.com).