It was predicted to be 97 degrees the day we hiked, and this is a very exposed trail on lava rock and sand so we started in the morning.

It starts with two patches of trees and shade before opening up to the lava rock trail section. I ended up carrying my poles during this part since they get stuck in between the rocks but was glad I had them for the sanding summit.

The side trail to little Belknap was one of the best parts of the hike and definitely worth the little bit of extra mileage. There were lots of flies and a few bees on the top of little Belknap.

The hike up Belknap crater was very sandy which made it harder than I expected. The summit had so many flies that we went back down to the “false summit” to look around and take pictures.

I enjoyed the unique views of Mt Washington and North Sister. It was also fun to talk to PCT thru hikers.