I started at just before 6 a.m. from the Sierra Madre trailhead for the Mt. Wilson Trail.  The hike is pretty challenging, as you are mostly climbing the whole time. It was mostly foggy along the trail so I could not see much from the trail but that also made for good weather for this hike. I am not sure I would want to do this in summer since many sections do not have cover. It did get a bit chilly toward the top but it was not too bad.

There are a couple downed trees that you have to go under or over between Orchard Camp and the bench at Manzanita Ridge. One other thing I should note: Less than a mile before the top (I think), you will come up to a road. However, just before you reach that road, you want to look for a dirt trail on the right. If you take the road, it leads to the locked gate for the Wilson Observatory (at least it was locked when I got up there).  The missed turnoff added several miles to my hike. It would take too long to explain how it happened but it was a combination of confusion over the GPX route and following someone whose route would have worked in the past.