First off there is no one’s fault for this fiasco but me. Not the nice people on the trail alerting me to the snow ahead, not the trailblazer who led me most of the way up Defiance, not the wonderful rangers and rescue personnel who are always willing to save a fool, not the WTA which keeps outstanding and recent trip reports available to all. Nope, the only one responsible for the below is your truly. (Note: if you don’t like drama skip the rest of this tale.)
Was a beautiful day for a 4 hour hike up the Ira Spring trail to the Bandera/Mason Lake junction. Hit the trail just before noon. Decided to take the lake route and shoot for Defiance since I was ahead of schedule and feeling great. When the snow began beyond Mason Lake followed footprints till trail re-emerged. Met a nice, wise, man who warned of the snow ahead and, while considering my options, another seasoned hiker passed by on the way up. Decided to follow this guy till my turn-around point at 2:00. Took a snack break and headed down…
Mistake #1: did not pay close attention to the return route in the snow since I followed the other guy up and relied on his navigation skills. Mistake #2: kept heading down and to the left (SE) without regard to terrain and overall direction. Soon came to very precipitous drops and rock ledges which overlooked a lake which I mistook for Mason Lake. It was actually Lake Kulla Kulla. Realized I was way off track and Mistake #3 decided to get to the lake below which should have a trail or campsite where I could return to civilization.
The next 90 minutes became an emergency situation where I fell numerous times, one time very badly, on my back, on a sharp rock (I have a photo of the bruise for posterity), and many times on knees, shins and rump. This trek down the 1000’ south face of Mt. Defiance broke down into 10-20 ft segments where I had to calculate the near and medium range risk/reward of making it to the next place where I rested and recalculated a route. Used an 18’ log pole twice to get down very tricky drops. Also learned which trees and shrubs have the strongest root structures growing out of the rocks. Wormed my way down for 90 minutes only losing my sunglasses (they’re yours if you find them), pride, and composure (no more than three times).
Reached the NW slope of Lake Kulla Kulla which was a rockpile covered in snow by approx 3:30. To the NW around the lake it was very rocky and not much options for a trail. To the NE it was snow covered rocks with a clearing so that is where I headed. Only fell in snow holes up to my chest twice on this ¼ mile hike. Once I got to the east side of Lake Kulla Kulla saw Little Kulla Lake and thought I saw footprints in the snow on its south shore. So headed over there where the prints were animal, not human. No trail around this lake. No trail around the bigger lake. Now what?
Saw a red ribbon on a tree branch ahead. Someone has been here before! Still no obvious trail but this made sense. It was next to a creek and another red ribbon could be seen uphill alongside the creek. Since these “signs” were in the general NE direction out of the Little Kulla Lake bowl I figured they led to Mason Lake and home. This process and hunt took another hour so it was now 5:30.
Began the slog up the creek which did not take me to Mason Lake. Nope, it led to another wall of rock about ¼ mile up. Loaded the empty water bottles I had with me (and iodine tablets for safety) with clear, clean spring water and kept slogging up the bowl to the N and NW pulling on the same shrub and tree limbs I used to much success on the way down Defiance. Process went from one of survival to one of persistence and desire to get home before dark. Traverse the ridge for the next 2 ½ hours finally ending up on the saddle between Defiance and Bandera at 7:00. Mason Lake has to be here somewhere! Found another trail of boots and decided to take the trail right which was heading down to where I determined Mason Lake should be. This was the correct trail and it took only 2 more hours to get to the TH where a Sheriff was waiting for Eastside Search and Rescue to come looking for my sorry fanny. I was able to get home to a ticked-off family by 10:00 after a very long 9-hour hike.
I am an old Eagle Scout, former Philmont Ranger, graduate of S.E.R.E. and various Navy survival training courses and all of it came back to me during this situation. I do not recommend anyone do this hike without a clear knowledge of the trail/mountain/area both up the hill and DOWN. I hope this report helps.

We hit the trailhead a bit late after a lazy Sunday morning and at 12:45pm the trailhead was packed. (50+ cars) We had quite a bit of company on the Ira Spring trail on this beautiful Sunday.

The trail below the Mason Lake / Bandera Mountain junction is in beautiful shape. The trail climbs steadily but reasonably through stream crossing, rock fields, and woods. Be aware though that the background noise of I-90 will stay with you throughout the front side of the mountain.

We took the left junction toward Mason Lake at the top. We hit snow patches almost as soon as we came down the backside of the ridge toward the lake at the Alpine Lakes Wilderness boundary. The snow is thawing toward the top but the coverage increases the further you go. Mason Lake is still approximately 50% snow covered.

Beyond Mason Lake, toward Little Mason, you were hiking over 90% snow coverage in the valley. We lost the trail and chose to call it a day above Little Mason. The boot pack is present but you will need a good map and basic route finding skills to continue beyond. The smarter hikers were wearing lightweight gaiters to continue further over the snowfield.

The view at the top is excellent. The Mt Rainer is so clear. The major issue is that the most trail from Lake Mason is still under snow. The trail is not easy to find but you can still follow the footprint.

With the weather extremely clear I headed up to the Ira Spring TH. The trail to the Bandera Mountain Mason lake split is in great shape. Once you reach the Lakes Wilderness sign and the Ira Spring Memorial you will head down to Mason lake and the snow begins. Watch out!! There are many dangerous hidden postholes that will have you sinking in to your chest so tread lightly. The trail is not marked and you will have to make your best judgement call on which boot path to follow. As you round Mason Lake, the "trail" becomes non existent. Follow what you can of a boot path around back to Mt. Defiance. You will go through an open area and then to the right of little Mason lake and then to the right up the spine. Again more hidden postholes. As you come to what would be the wildflower field (if there wasn't so much snow) I continued straight up as I couldn't see a clear route that follows the trail. Eventually this will all be real obvious but for now it is kind of a make the best trail that you can. Just head up! As for traction devices, some of you may feel better with micro spikes and some poles. I didn't use my spikes but I brought them cuz no matter how many macho posters say they aren't needed I never listen to them. I also brought my ice axe which was a lot of fun to use on the 60-70 degree slopes. Either way you are definitely rewarded at the top.