"I would definitely recommend this trip to a friend."
Started up the Pratt Lake trail #1007 in middle of an August afternoon. Lots of day hikers heading up and down. The throngs thinned greatly after passing the cut-off to the Granite Mtn trail. After crossing Pratt pass I passed a pair of overnighters with huge packs slowly working their way to Pratt lake. At Pratt lake only one tent, suprising I expected more. Continued on to Lower Tushcohatchie lake, trail much narrower on this section. At Lower Tuschohatchie, only one camper, he had come in on Fri afternoon and I was the only other persion he had seen so far.
I followed the fisherman track around the lower lake to the inlet. A vague track works it's way up the rocks of the stream to just below the waterfall, where it cuts left and I had to clamber up rocks and trees to get past the waterfall. Wading through the chest high blueberry bushes I reached the unnamed lake between lower and upper Tushcohatchie lakes. I found one partially grown over tent site on the south side of the larger unnamed lake. Many mosquitos here. I choose a bivy site up on the rock slide between the two lakes, away from this "air force" I enjoyed a colorful sunset, followed by a ghostly moonrise.
On Sunday morning I waded through the blueberry bushes to and around the north side of the larger unnamed lake and worked my way up a rock slide on the north side of the valley. Near the top of the slide I worked left into more open timber and then down through blueberry bushes to the outlet of upper Tushcohatchie lake. There is one nearly overgrown tent site here. I saw elk and bear tracks in muddy areas on the shore.
Leaving the lake I tried to follow the reminant of trail at the outlet. This lasted about 100 yards. So I cut back through the berry bushes and open forest to the rock slide. From the bottom of the rock slide I contoured over to the ridge separating the Tuschohatchie vally from the Pratt valley. The ridge top made for much easier travel in mostly open forest. At a low point in the ridge I cut left and picked up the fisherman track on lower Tuchohatchie and easly looped back to the main trail.
The trail from Lower Tuschohatchie to Melakwa lake is fairly narrow, but in good shape, with only a few mud holes and blowdowns. I passed one part of four on this section.
Arriving at Melakwa lake the solitude portion of the trip was over as there were at least two dozen day hikers at the lake when I arrived. On the way back down the Denny Creek trail I passed at least four dozen more day hikers and the crowed at the water slides was large and noisy.
Closing the loop I walked the three miles of road from the Denny Creek trailhead to the Granite Mtn trailhead. If I had more time on Sat. stashing a bike in the woods near the trailhead would have made this portion go quicker.
I was supprised by the amount of solitude on the section from Pratt pass to Melakwa lake. I think I'll do this loop again, but this time head for Kaleetan lake instead of upper Tuschohatchie.
Note: This is backcountry wilderness travel. You are responsible for informing yourself of the hazards and taking the necessary precautions.
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