Pratt Lake Basin, Thompson Lake via Mount Defiance — Saturday, Sep. 12, 2015

Snoqualmie Region > North Bend Area

We intentionally chose a long way to get to Thompson Lake, starting at the Pratt Lake/Granite Mountain trailhead. With good weather, blue skies and no wind, we enjoyed the fall colors, views of surrounding peaks, and the beautiful lakes on a challenging 24-mile out and back. If you're looking for a great training run/hike that includes climbing in and out of lake basins and is close to the cities, this might be it. Estimated elevation gain was 7000 feet. The trails were all in good condition, with only a tree or two to climb around or over. I usually wouldn't suggest additional travel on trails in the I-90 corridor but I think the trail between Mt. Defiance and Thompson Lake might benefit by more use. The tread gets narrow, there is light debris covering most of that section, in places the trail is starting to slide down slopes and is even disappearing for a few feet in a couple of the meadows. I hope those who love the solitude here don't hate me for the comment, I like calm and quiet too, but it would be a shame if such a beautiful trail faded away. On a busy Saturday we saw only two other people on this section. Oh- and I wrote that the bugs weren't an issue, but yellow jackets can be aggressive this time of year. Hikers reported a nest, and I think stings, somewhere back in the trees towards Mason Lake, maybe 3/4 mile from the Mount Defiance spur trail. We heard buzzing both out and back but apparently didn't draw their attention.