[Bloated Chipmunk]

A bit late on the TR, yes. But like the Easter bunny delivering chocolate, better late than never, right? Spring has sprung so distraction comes easily, I suppose... However, winter was still evident in the Merritt Lk. area. Prior to this hike, my research of TRs resulted in summer-only excursions. Seems as though no one goes to this place in the winter, for what reason remains a mystery. Everyone must get as far east as the ever-popular Smithbrook Rd. and associated trails that the nearby Merritt gets overlooked. Because it seemed this area was seldom visited via snowshoe, it made it all the more tantalizing for me to visit. Todd & I departed from Everett around 7:30 AM. Sailing was smooth along hwy. 2 through the various small towns leading up to the pass. We were greeted by a few snow flurries at the ski slopes, as well as the brief congestion caused by pedestrians making a run for it across the hwy. from one parking lot to the other. Once beyond the crest sunshine broke through the clouds and stuck with us for the remainder of the trip. Spotting the pullout for the forest rd. was tricky, however thankfully we saw the sign for Merritt Lk. just in time and as we slowed to turn in, a driver coming up behind honked for no apparent reason. Either it was someone we knew (a fellow hiker, perhaps?) or they were just an idiot. Since I didn't recognize the car, I'm guessing the latter. The parking is slim--room for only a few vehicles--but safe nevertheless. No parking pass needed here since it's just the shoulder of the rd., but we sported one anyway. After a few minutes of donning the gaiters & such, we started up the rd. A few steps convinced us to strap on the snowshoes (snow was compact/solid in some areas but not in others) and we were off. The forest rd. is 1.6 mi. to the trailhead, an easy incline with the option of cutting the switchbacks in a couple locations. Before long we reached the empty snow-locked summer parking lot and the trail register. Curious to find out when the last visitor came, we checked the logs. Two dudes at the end of November were the last ones. Wow, 4 mos. of winter had hit this region in the meantime, so we knew what was in store for us on this day--mile upon mile of breaking trail, w/multiple stops for GPS consultation. For the 1st mi. or so of trail, route finding was relatively easy as enough snow had receded to reveal a slight depression where we guessed the trail must be and a check of a map and GPS confirmed this. The grade was pretty easy at 1st & sinking was practically nonexistent so we made excellent time. Soon we came upon some boulders w/cool icicles & stopped for a couple photos before traversing below and around to the left/south of the big rocks. We temporarily lost the trail but seemed to pick it up again above the boulders. From here the route turned pretty steep as we aimed toward the ridgeline and had to negotiate more rocks. The snow was deeper and sliding was easier so our pace was consequently slowed. The trail was no longer evident so we relied more heavily on the map & GPS at this point. The summer route steadily switchbacks up the slope, attaining the ridge somewhere around the 4,200' level. For the most part we followed this, though most likely with fewer switchbacks & more dicey sections. After a particularly hairy bit, the incline eased & we approached a false ridge line & angled our way NW to the true ridge, topping out at the spine in roughly the same area as the summer trail. From here the ridge walk was pretty easy at 1st but soon became narrower & steeper. The map showed the summer trail crossing over the ridge line & traversing slightly below it, but finding this crucial junction in the snow would no doubt be challenging, & we weren't even sure that it would be feasible in winter conditions considering it may involve steep sidehilling in which one false move may result in an unintentional glissade of a few hundred feet into Mahor Crk. We did eventually reach an area of the ridge where a crossover looked doable & decided to go for it. However, after 50' or so it became clear that the sidehill angle was sharpening & that to continue to traverse would be mighty risky. Instead, we headed back to our crossover point & continued on up the spine of the ridge, avoiding a cornice on the north side. We snow scrambled up a steep bit (not before Todd exclaimed "You're not seriously going up that, are you?!" to which I replied "It doesn't look too bad.") After ascending a couple hundred feet in short (relatively) order, the spine eased greatly & we spotted what appeared to be a valley down the ridge to the north (I'm guessing we were near the junction w/the trail from Crescent Lk.). Also through the trees, but to the south, was a broad flat sunny promontory which begged exploration but we resisted temptation for the time being. We still held out hope of finding an easy way down/across the slope to the north in order to hit Merritt Lk. but w/every inspection, we encountered what was essentially a cliff. Another check of the GPS revealed that now we were actually above the lk. in elevation, so we decided to head to that sunny promontory we'd seen earlier for lunch. What a view! Well, for about 5 mins. The wind picked up & we headed back into the trees to eat. Clouds thinly veiled the sun now, but we were thankful for our brief view of snowy peaks to the east & south. Time was running short as we were scheduled for dinner at Todd's parents' house that evening. We decided that our sunny overlook was a sort of mini-summit, & perhaps a more appropriate destination for this day than a tree-encircled lk. After a few more photos, we headed down. We both dreaded the particularly steep sections, even though I usually have an easier time coming down than going up. Todd carefully & expertly kicked in steps, as glissading in most places was not an option unless one had excellent steering ability to avoid smacking into the densely placed trees. After some time we were through the steepest part of the ridge spine & our knees thanked us for the respite. We walked where we could, & kicked in where we had to. Soon we were at the point at which we had initially gained the true ridge, and turned in a more southernly direction to follow our tracks. Here, I managed a couple short glissades (later I noticed a rip in the @$$ of my rain pants--oops). Then back to the boulders, where we discovered that we had to have been slightly insane to pick the exact route we did. Nevertheless, we got down after some falling & cursing, & it was smooth sailing at this point. That is until, inexplicably, we lost our tracks from the morning & actually overshot the trailhead by being too far north. After some walking around in circles a bit & determining that we needed to head SE, I spotted the TH sign. At last!--An easy rd. walk now...no more need to have one's full undivided attention placed at the feet. The rd. back to the car was uneventful minus postholing once by a fallen tree & the observation of fresh cc skier tracks--the 1st sign of recent human activity all day. We reached the car near sunset & Todd phoned his parents, who were ready to eat but would keep the food warm for us. We headed back into town, luckily missing the usual hwy. 2 traffic. We spiffed up in Everett & then headed to Edmonds where delicious home-cooked Indian leftovers and wine awaited.

Merritt Lk. TH

Cornice

View north from ridge

View east from ridge

Icicles

Funky trees

View to the east

[wildernessed]

I often thought that would be a good winter trip, even an alternative way to alpine lookout or thruhike to Round and out.Can't wait to see your pics.

[Bloated Chipmunk]

Yeah, I should have a link to the pics soon...but don't get too excited though b/c it will only be about 4 pictures...

[MLHSN]

[wildernessed]

The whole route looks nice, with the exception of the red area on the map W. of Alpine Lookout. That section, right now, does not look "user friendly".

Nason Ridge W of Alpine Lookout

[Bloated Chipmunk]

[Schmidt Alti-Dude]

Thanks for the TR, BC. I think I speak for a lot of "lake baggers" when I state that the reason nobody goes there in the winter is there is nothing to see at the lake. Where's the pics?

[MLHSN]

[ree]

That link to the pictures didn't work for me. It said

[DRSpalding]

[Bloated Chipmunk]

Weird, sorry about that. After I posted that link, I clicked on it to make sure it worked & it did, w/o any alteration. Not sure why it didn't work for you. But glad you got to see 'em eventually!

[CC]

[Bloated Chipmunk]