This is a great hike for views from the top. A few quick thoughts:
* My buddy and I parked right off the Tinkham Road exit on the north side of the freeway exit. The former forestry road is blocked but there is a trail you can follow from there that is about 0.7+/-mile to the trailhead and an extra 600+/- elevation. The extra mileage follows a stream and was quite pleasant but does add some extra hiking/elevation. However, it goes give you the ability to say that you hiked from I-90 to the top!
* I'm always amazed how steep the trail gets after the Mason Lake trail junction. It basically goes straight up the mountain until you to the ridge that you can follow to the summit. The hike along the ridge goes from boulder hopping to hiking through some trees.
* Views are great from the top but honestly the summit doesn't have the views. They are better just below.
* The bugs were pretty bad throughout the entire hike. Not a huge amount of bites afterwards but constant buzzing and landing on you. Unfortunately we had no wind at the top so it was a quick summit stop.
* It was 82 degrees when we started just before 5 pm and was a very hot hike. If you needed water there are multiple water sources on the trail until you get to the Mason Lake junction. At the summit there is no snow on the trail but there are snowbanks on the north side of the ridge you could use to melt if needed.
Just about 9+/- miles round trip from I-90 to the summit and my Apple Watch said 3,456' elevation gain. It was a great workout and while the hike is a grunt, it is worth it.
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