Alpine Lakes Wilderness #11 - Mason Lake

I arrived at the trailhead early enough that the forest still belonged mostly to the birds. The parking lot had plenty of space then, only a few scattered vehicles sitting quietly under the trees. The cool morning air carried the flute-like song of a Varied Thrush and the high buzzy notes of Townsend’s Warblers moving through the evergreens above me. For long stretches of trail, those sounds were the only company I had.

The hike to Mason Lake is one of the classics of the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. The newer Ira Spring Trail climbs steadily through forest before opening to sweeping views of Bandera Mountain and Mount Defiance. It is well engineered, accessible, and inviting in a way that allows hikers of many abilities to experience this landscape. Walking it this morning, I found myself thinking less about the destination and more about the man whose name is attached to the trail.

Remembering Ira Spring

Ira Spring was one of the great chroniclers of the Pacific Northwest outdoors. Born in 1918, he became known as a photographer, writer, conservationist, and hiking advocate. Along with Harvey Manning, he co-authored the famous 100 Hikes series that introduced generations of Washington hikers to trails across the Cascades and Olympics.

The first hiking book I bought after moving to Washington in 1997 was 100 Hikes in Washington. I can still remember flipping through those pages while trying to understand this new landscape I had landed in. Back then, the mountains felt impossibly large and mysterious. The book made them approachable. Not easy, but understandable. Reachable.

Ira Spring’s legacy is not just the photographs or the books themselves. It is the cumulative effect those books had on thousands of people who stepped outside because of them. Entire lives of hiking, backpacking, climbing, photography, and conservation probably started because someone opened one of those guides on a rainy Seattle evening and decided to try a trail the next morning.

That feels like a meaningful legacy.

Tomorrow marks 29 years at my company. Somehow, I am now the sixth most tenured person there. But standing on the trail this morning, I found myself asking: who really cares about that? What does it actually mean?

Yes, I have made meaningful contributions over those 29 years. I helped build systems, teams, and organizations that grew alongside the company itself. There is satisfaction in that. But lately, working at the company doesn't generate the same excitement it used to. Meetings blur together. Documents replace experiences. Quarters and annual goals march forward endlessly.

A forest trail has a way of stripping all of that down to size.

Out there, none of the titles matter. Tenure does not matter. Organizational charts do not matter. The only thing that matters is the rhythm of your breathing, the sound of your footsteps on dirt and stone, and the feeling of being fully present in a quiet place.

That is why mornings like this matter so much to me.

Peace.

Quiet.

Solitude.

For a few hours, I could hear myself think again.

By the time I returned from Mason Lake, the world had changed. The once quiet trail was crowded with hikers climbing toward the lake. The parking lot was overflowing. Cars idled at the entrance waiting for someone to leave so they could claim a parking spot. The silence of the early morning had given way to the busy energy of a beautiful spring weekend in the Cascades.

And honestly, that felt fitting too.

Because trails like this exist precisely because people like Ira Spring convinced others that these places were worth visiting, worth protecting, and worth loving.

Maybe that is the best kind of legacy there is.

If You Go

Mason Lake

• Located off I-90 near Exit 45 in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness.

• The Ira Spring Trail is now the standard route to Mason Lake and Bandera Mountain.

• Roughly 6–7 miles roundtrip to Mason Lake depending on route specifics, with steady elevation gain.

• Early starts are highly recommended, especially on spring and summer weekends when parking fills quickly.

• Wildlife and bird song are a highlight in the early morning hours. Townsend’s Warblers and Varied Thrushes were especially active during this hike.

• The trail is well maintained but can still have lingering snow patches at higher elevations in shoulder seasons.