This hike was incredibly busy compared to other hikes on this challenge. There were many big groups of 6-8 people who were either day hiking or camping along this trail. To be fair, I did start the hike around noon, and most of the traffic was in the other direction – people were coming down the trail. But judging from the parking conditions I've seen in the past – it's always fairly busy and it is fairly hard to find parking at the trailhead; I ended up parking along the road, 0.3 miles away from the trailhead.

The weather was nice – sunny, no clouds, around 75 degrees outside. I packed a lot more clothes, as I expected it to be almost as windy as Mt. Baldy was, but didn't need any extra layers. Did end up drinking all the water I had with me by the end of the hike – but there is running water along the first half of the hike, so it's nice to know you have backup options.

As for the trail – it's steep all along the way and it gets progressively steeper as you advance. But for most of it it's not terrible – only the last part is a bit more challenging. But definitely a good workout.