[boot up]

Bandera-Mason- turned around in trackless snow before Defiance. Favorite outfit was flip flops on bare feet in the snow just before the Mason lake creek crossing. Feet looked COLD and she did NOT look happy. I had micro-spikes still on at that point. stats.... 8:30am start with a sparse parking lot 4519 max altitude 2628 elevation gain approx 8-9 miles and much tromping in the snow routefinding. 6.5hours....trail finding in the trackless snow without GPS is SLOW. Even slower when someone is wiping out your route marks in the snow for the trip back. Nice flowers along the way.

More leopard lilys

Leopard lily in bloom

Paint brush closeup

Rain drops and flowers

And as has been mentioned, another good crop of bear grass

Looking a bit like the tropics....almost feeling that way....almost

Bear grass standing out

Bear grass through the leaves

Bear grass and rocky slopes

Bear grass rocks

Looking up the Bandera climb, covered in Bear grass

The Great White Egress blockade is looking like a sad shadow of its former glory, apparently even navigable with bare feet in flip flops.

Great White from above...almost sad looking now, compared to former glory

Great white. Starting to look small

Mason lake is getting close to being thawed out, although not quite ready for a summer swim, apparently much to the suprise of many people, looking at how they were dressed.

Mason lake clearing a bit. Ice and air.

Mason lake spots

Mason lake spots close

Mason lake rain drops on water and sparkling on leaves.

Mason Lake 7/5/08 Thawing out

Snow gets pretty thick but is well consolidated about halfway up the lake with only a few patches without snow after that.

Close up of intersection signs on 7/5

Defiance Pratt Mason intersection on 7/05/08

I finally turned around, even though the microspikes were keeping my grip solid, as I was solo and the trail was more than vague with few landmarks, since it was socked with drizzle and fog, and I haven't hiked the trail enough to have the route memorized. Someone was thrashing through the underbrush and rock on the ridge above me and finally dropped down. He took great glee with wiping out the discreet scratches I put in the snow to find my way back(dind't know they were mine), claiming "flagging isn't legal in Wilderness", and apparently a scratch in SNOW that will be gone in a day or less is "flagging". No mention of his off trail disturbing of flora and fauna in Wilderness is technically "illegal". Or why actual flags are used on so many snowfields in Wilderness and places like Rainier. I made some excuse to let him go on ahead, as I have no need to hike with jerks that would get off by getting someone lost to prove their own arrogance, because THEY know the trail. Trail routefinding is certainly a challenge past the lake.

Mt Defiance trail turn around point. I was getting down to one other quickly fading set of tracks. Seemed prudent not to solo further

Looking down the Defiance trail. Even tougher to track the trail covered in snow in on 7/5/2008

Near my turn around point on the Defiance trail. This spot looked vaguely familiar from previous summer hikes

Take a deep breath and let the guy go back to his high impact campsite... Then it was just a matter of tromping down the knee hammering descent and watching the amazing summer outfits climb up the cool rainy trail. Probably not bad going UP while they are warm.

View from the "pass" on the ira spring trail on bandera before dropping down to Mason lake

rain clouds fille the valley, then crept up the mountain

rain came in waves up the valley, starting as a rising cloud

And of course one last stop at the waterfall before hitting the parking lot

burst of glory

See the face guarding the Abyss

Little Fall

Veiled rock on the lower falls

What a rush!

Overall not a super long mileage hike, and once more since "flagging" or ANY way of tracking the trail over snowfields is "illegal", it was once again driving home how nice a GPS would be THIS year at least. (I may yet bite the bullet and get one someday). And the microSprikes are AWESOME.

[EastKing]

[puzzlr]

It's unbelievable that someone would do that! I'm not sure I would have kept my cool.

[Middle E]

I think Brewmaster and I might have met you as we were coming down. I remember a solo hiker with microspikes in the flattish part of the ridge beween Mason Lake and Defiance. Although the summer trail is snow-covered for a good stretch, we were both reasonably familiar with the route (and had a couple of waypoints on David's GPS) and were able to make it to the summit. Our only problem was the switchback up to the ridge - we turned too early and had a short stretch of slippery and steep scrambling, but came out only 50' below the trail. Once on the ridge the way is more obvious, though still with stretches of snow in the woods. There was no view at all from the top. Glad you took some pictures, as we both forgot our cameras. As we were headed town the hordes were headed up - and I remember some flip flops! The beargrass on the open slopes below Bandera is thick in bloom.

[Elvis]

Ditto on the jerk erasing your marks! I've been turned around on snow like that before and found that even leaving scratches or taking extra effort to leave identifiable marks in consolidated snow can be helpful, but you can still easily miss them. It's funny how other people can't envision that your tracks in consolidated snow aren't always obvious. I'm still in disbelief at that guy erasing your 'flags'. Get real...

[boot up]

[Tom]

[boot up]

[Tom]

Sorry Boot Up. First you made it sound like you weren't flagging at all and got everyone worked up about someone erasing your tracks for no reason. Then you fess up to flagging your route with "micro flags" (whatever that means). Then you claim you have a "handicap" that justifies your usage of flagging. Then you go off about lesser? "ill prepared" people on your way down, having to dodge other cars on your way out (presumably a problem with their driving not yours), and complaining about being stuck behind someone in a Subaru driving too slowly. I apologize for my apparent arrogance (maybe you can point it out in my reports), but it just all kind of rubbed me the wrong way.

[Yet]

You're such a troublemaker, Tom. Maybe you should ban yourself for 24 hours. boot up, no pics of the flipflops??

[boot up]

[Tom]

[boot up]

[Tom]

I was just going by what you said. Let's clarify then. You do have a sense of direction. You're not actually handicapped (based on your use of the word handicapped more than once I assumed you were saying you had issues with short term memory or a similar mental handicap, but apparently not, it was just a figure of speech not to be taken literally). Sounds like you carry a map, compass, and altimeter and apparently? know how to use them. So just wondering, why you feel it necessary to place flags, particularly on a route like this? If you're looking so carefully for these micro? flags on the way down, why not just exercise your mind a little harder, look for natural landmarks, a footprint in the snow, etc.?

[Backpacker Joe]

Interesting thread. I wouldn't mind being show (in the rule book I suppose) the law prohibiting off trail travel in the wilderness area.... Pretty sure it doesn't exist.