My husband surprised me on my 48th birthday by taking my kids and me on this hike. He knows that I'm doing the 6-pack of peaks challenge but had no idea that this was an alternate for Mt. Wilson (which I summited in February). I was so excited when I got there and realized that this is one of the peaks in the challenge!!! The hike was challenging but doable as the switchbacks were long and gradual. I had no difficulty summiting and if there were any challenges I would say it had to be the snowbanks that we had to navigate over. I didn't have trekking poles with me as this was a surprise hike and I didn't plan for anything long. Trekking poles would have been nice. The panoramic views at the top were incredible as was the 1,500 – year old limber pine that we passed on our way up. Also, it was fun to be hiking on a section of the PCT as there were many through hikers that we met at the top and I had the opportunity to converse with them about their experiences and adventures.