Merritt Lake 10.1.17
We were looking for a hike to do in the Lake Wenatchee area. Aaron wanted to head into Spider Gap up in Phelps Basin since we have never been, but the forecast seemed to be calling for rain so I wanted a shorter hike that didn’t take as long to get to. After looking up shorts hikes in the area we finally settled on Merritt Lake. Aaron’s parents were in town visiting us for the weekend. When we got to the east side of the pass I was surprised at how many fall colors were out. We had been out backpacking the weekend before but the colors weren’t as vibrant as they were now. This meant that I took lots of pictures of leaves and the fall colors throughout our hike.
One of my many fall colors photos, a red leaf with some water droplets
We found the sign for the trailhead along highway 2 and started up forest service road 657. The 1.5 mile road seemed longer than any of us anticipated and it was a bit overgrown. The road was also super rocky, I was happy to have my higher clearance vehicle so I didn’t have to think twice about anything. Luckily we didn’t meet any cars coming down and finally we found the parking lot. There were a few cars there but plenty of spots still to be had. We all brought hats, gloves, and rain jackets as it was a brisk fall day with a high chance of rain. Aaron registered the group at the trailhead and we started up.
The first part of the trail heads uphill through lots of trees, then it starts switchbacking across the mountainside in the more typical sparse tree vegetation that seems normal in the area. The first half of the trail seems a lot steeper than the last bit which is kind of a nice reprieve. There was a large tree down on the trail that a couple of backpackers told us about, so we headed up a cutoff to avoid it. Aaron went under the tree and said it wasn’t too terrible though. As we got up higher there seemed to be more fall colors for me to enjoy.
Fall colors along the trail as we head up the ridge
As we crossed over the ridge the steepness backed off a bit. We went by a small boulder field, luckily the trail didn’t go through it. We also got some peek-a-boo views of the rest of Nason Ridge to the east of us. It sure would be a long ridge traverse! We were then heading through the trees on a fairly nice trail, it was definitely my favorite part of the hike. We found the ridge trail crossing but there were several signs to point us in the direction of the lake.
Hiking along the less steep portion of the trail through the trees, not far from the lake
Finally we found the lake! There are a lot of weeds growing at the south end. Aaron continued on the trail and found the nice day use area so we stopped there.
Merritt Lake
After a few pictures of the lake and a snack, we packed up. It had started to rain/snow and we wanted to get down. It was still a bit sunny which created a nice rainbow for us on the hike down! There was just a little snow high up on the ridge above the lake too.
Rainbow in front of Nason Ridge
We had met one or two cub scout groups and some other backpackers hiking out, and we met a few more people hiking up as we came down. Not overly popular but a few different groups. Luckily the rain/snow didn’t materialize and stopped part way down. Finally we popped back out in the parking lot, happy to sit down in the car. Overall it was a great little hike and I anticipate many more trips to Merritt Lake in my future, and hopefully some beyond to Lost Lake too.
GPS track here
Trail up to Merritt Lake