Forum Index > Trip Reports > Howard & Mastiff via Lost Lake 8.20-21.20
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lovetowonder
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lovetowonder
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PostThu Aug 27, 2020 3:14 pm 
The brother and I had plans to scramble up Chikamin Thurs - Fri but the forecast nudged us elsewhere. Our best chance of no precip appeared to be east of Stevens so after a bit of research we settled on hiking up Mt. Mastiff and Mt. Howard. We opted to camp at Lost Lake after hearing the bugs were atrocious at Crescent Lake. Hiking in I was a bit slow because I was tired from my Ruth-Icy trip the day before. Dan was gracious and didn't complain about my less-than-ideal pace! The trees were big, the views increasing, and the berries ripe. Oh and the bugs were hungry.
I was a bit surprised by the quality of the "trail" from the ridge down to Lost Lake. We had been thinking about doing an out-and-back but after reaching Lost Lake we found the idea of the loop (and not having to go back up that steep rock-and-root-filled "trail") much more attractive. We saw a few tents and their humans so we followed the overgrown trail around the lake to the opposite side and found a lovely spot to make camp.
A few of the campers paddled around the lake in their inflatables fishing and a group of boy scouts came down to the lake after we did. It was still pretty quiet despite our human presence. The evening was mild with just enough to breeze to mostly keep the bugs away. We had dinner, filtered water, and went to bed early. When the breeze died down the spot was incredibly quiet.
We were up at 6am and leaving camp with our full packs before 7am. Our day started with an annoying bushwhack which was a pain but over in less than half an hour. We soon broke out of the forest with thick underbrush and could finally see a bit more (my pack had pine needles in every crevice and I had tree sap in my hair). Sadly I didn't take any pictures or videos of the bushwhack to do it justice. Caught a glimpse of Mastiff....
As we got higher we could see more including Glacier Peak and Lake Wenatchee.
The upper slopes above the thick trees were straightforward and soon we were on top of Mastiff.
We could now see Mt. Howard and the route ahead.
Some trip reports had mentioned they had to drop down low below the saddle between Mastiff and Howard, almost to Canaan Lake. We basically just followed the ridge however, and found that if we stuck to the right (the north) of the trees there was plenty of room on the rocks to walk.
The slopes turned into a boulder field and we rock hopped until we found ourselves on the top of Mt. Howard. Views were lovely and the dark, somewhat ominous clouds made for a dramatic landscape.
We didn't linger on the summit as we knew rain was coming and we weren't sure how the descent to Crescent Lake would go. It ended up fine; essentially following a straight line from Howard's summit down to the lake.
We ended up in waist-high grass and wildflowers as we got down the last steep slopes to the lake. It was pretty and soft ground and I was convinced I had just acquired a million ticks... which ultimately proved to be false. But it was sure a prime tick opportunity!
Soon we were back on a trail and starting the traverse on the Nason Ridge trail back to the Merritt Lake trail we had come in on. The bushes are dripping with ripe berries and that definitely slowed us down. Delicious!
Caught a glimpse of Howard behind us through the trees. It's fun to look at a distant spot you had just been standing on.
We reached the junction and turned right on the Merritt Lake trail to get back to our car. 20 minutes from the TH we felt our first few raindrops. It was warm and dusty so the rain actually felt nice! Just before the TH we met two guys and their dog who were day hiking up to Merritt Lake. They were surprised when we told them they were the first people we had seen all day, because apparently the TH was pretty full with cars. It seems the area has enough trail and lake options that it can absorb people well. We got back to our car and drove home in the rain, making a stop at Zeke's for my brother's regular blackberry milkshake. In the end my Gaia said 14 miles and 4900' gain. That gain does not include the many ups and downs, though. A lovely trip and so nice to get outside with my brother! Again, grateful for the opportunity to have the trail mostly to ourselves even in a commonly traveled area.

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cascadetraverser
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cascadetraverser
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PostThu Aug 27, 2020 6:25 pm 
Cool trip! Thank for the TR...

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