On August 6, John Sweat led a hike to Patjens Lakes.  It was a full house on this particular outing, many of whom had never been to Patjens Lakes, including John, himself.  The trailhead begins on the Westside of Big Lake, South of Hoodoo.

The weather was perfect with good cloud cover, as the first few miles was through a burn area.  On the first ascent they were greeted with ripe Huckleberries; a pleasant distraction while cresting the ridge.  On the descent the group entered lush vegetation with old growth conifers for a couple of miles.  They enjoyed a break on the shore of Middle Patjens and to their surprise had very little insect activity.  When out of the lakes basin they came into view of Big Lake.  They skirted around the southside of the lake back to the trailhead.  At 6.9 miles and only 400 feet vertical, this is truly a fun trail!