Ira Spring Trail - Mason Lake — Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2014

Snoqualmie Region > Snoqualmie Pass

Wow what a beautiful hike! My dad had been wanting to take me here all summer but we never got around to it, wish I would have gone sooner. This was probably in my top 10 hikes of all time, partly due to how pretty everything looked with the snow and also the sun setting against the mountains. The road getting to the trail head is bad, but we were also in a two door BMW sedan with rear wheel drive hahahaha there is ice and snow the entire drive and about halfway there the potholes begin. They are HUGE! When we got to the trailhead there was not a single car there so that was nice. the actual trail is a perfect incline and length, the snow was easy enough to walk in with boots (i had microspikes on mine) i brought a pole which came in handy when trying to cross one of the waterfalls. Even with the cold temperatures nothing was slick when walking. We took a wrong turn towards the top when the sign either points you in the direction to bandera mountain or the lake, the arrow to mason lake was faded. because of this and our late start we were forced to turn around, heading down in the dark was fine though because the trail is very well kept. so tips for this hike would be: go in a car that has all wheel drive and can clear pot holes, the driver of the car should have experience driving in snow/ice, have microspikes on your boots, bring poles to help cross the water, make sure to take the right turn when you get to the sign, get started early (unless you dont mind making it to the lake then you get the most gorgeous sunset).