Granite Lakes - Skagit County
~ Deer Creek Drainage ~

Granite Lakes No. 2 © Ken James McLeod

After the Mt. Higgins Road became too difficult for the truck, we (Martin Jensen and I) both got onto Martin's Honda Trail 90 motorcycle to skirt futher up the logging roads and intersect with one that led almost directly above the upper most lake; lots of logging had occured recently the past few years and skid roads were aboundant. The 500 rainbow trout fry (MWRB) in my pack got quite the ride and it was one I'll never forget (two adults with backpacks on riding a Honda 90 for miles on an old logging road filled with chuckholes) for we bounced & bobbed heavily en-route to our jump-off-spot.

Down through the brush we went finding a meadow here and there, I led as usual, with my inert way of following deer-game trails to water sources. We arrived at the upper most Granite in no time, and found it barren, then stocked it with 100 fish.

Onward to number 2 lake where we stocked it with 150 fish, thence to Granite 3 where 250 were stock. By now the sun was out and it was turning into a really hot day, near 90 degrees. We were then attacked by hords of mosquitoes, black flies, and deer flies. We fly fished in Big Granite for cutthroat trout though they were small, found little evidence of previous fishing and only an old camp here & there. In the end, the biting bugs drove us out, I'd return in Sept. to stock some more fish in other pots that we located throughout the day, but for now it's "let's get the Hell out of here, Martin!"

Mounted back on the Honda 90, we commenced the return trip over the same ugly route to the truck. At the end of day, we were both pretty spent to say the least. Martin's Honda 90's were ones that he bought to tinker with (usually didn't run) and then rebuilt the engines himself for use on logging roads and to get passed gates, so he could further his fishing wherever that led; an era sadly gone these days since trail-type motorcycles are mostly a thing of the past, but ceratinly not forgotten...

KJM

July 27, 1982

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