I hiked to Granite Lakes today with Carl. We got pretty soaked because it was raining from the car all the way to the lakes and back. It isn’t as bad as it might sound because when you are in the forest, the canopy keeps most of the rain out.
However, much of this trail is very brushy and overgrown so we got soaked from that anyway.
When we got to the lakes we couldn’t see much of the peaks above us:
I have read about an abandoned logging road that allegedly leads to what used to be a mine. Based on the description of where the (former) road intersects the Granite Creek Trail, Carl and I believe we have found the spot. The route, if it exists, is on the map as per below (see the dotted line called ‘Logging Road’):
A very nice hike, just over 8 miles, 2,500 feet of elevation gain. We got wet, sure, but we didn’t melt.