Trip report by Dave Steckler
Left the trailhead at 8:00am on Father's Day and only encountered one person on the trail the entire way up. The way down in the afternoon was another story as the great weather brought out literally hundreds of people.
Photo: Blazer Lake as seen from the Pratt Mountain trail. (Reuben Slasor photo.)
The trail is a fairly easy climb through the woods; even the switchbacks are not that steep. Somewhat muddy in spots, it follows beautiful and noisy Talapus creeak for a while to Talapus Lake at 1.5 miles (approx 3200'). Then up and around Olallie Lake to the Pratt Lake turnoff at about 3 miles (approx 4000').
We chose to not take the turnoff and continue on the trail along the ridge, up some more serious switchbacks until we came to a large boulder field at mile 4 (approx 4500'). Instead of continuing on to Blazer, Rainbow or Island Lake, we turned off-trail straight up the boulder field.
This was a "hand-and-feet" scramble up about 600' in 1/4 mile to the top of Pratt Mountain (5099') where we had great views or Mt. Rainier to the south, Pratt Lake far below, and various other "neighborhood" peaks (Granite, Bandera, Defiance, etc.) all around. There was even a glimpse out to the Olympics to the west.
For the trip down, we decided to scramble cross-county along the ridge to the southeast back towards the trail. This involved a lot of "bush rappelling" down very steep slopes and an unintentional glisade down a small snowfield. A number of scratches and scrapes later, we re-emerged back on the trail just to the southwest of the Pratt Lake turnoff. I recommend going back down the boulder field instead.
All-in-all, a great day and a great hike only 30 minutes from Seattle.
Getting there: We started at the end of FR 9030, 2600'.
Note: This is backcountry wilderness travel. Any trail can become very dangerous in winter conditions. You are responsible for informing yourself of the hazards and taking the necessary precautions. Please read Terms of Use.