We arrived at the Mitchell Canyon Visitor shortly after 8am and started the hike around 8:30am. This hike was long, and we wanted to start early when the weather was cooler. There were already many cars in the parking lot.

We started from Oak Road leading to Mitchell Rock Trail. The trail was a narrow, winding dirt road. It was almost completely exposed with only small patches of shade. Today was a brilliant day, and the weather was warm. Fortunately, there was wind to keep down the temperature. We steadily climbed up, passing Mitchell Rock and Twin Peaks, and then turned to Eagle Peak Trail. Among all the Diablo peaks, Eagle Peak was my favorite. It provided a superb 360-degree panoramic view and was usually quiet. The way down from Eagle Peak was a very steep dirt and gravel trail and was very slippery. We met a group doing the same Summit Loop. They told us that they were training for their upcoming TMB trekking.

Bald Ridge Trail was another narrow dirt trail that involved a lot of climbing. Wildflowers galore — I recognized Clarkia, Sticky Monkey Flower, Mariposa Lily, Morning Glory, California Poppy, Indian Paintbrush, and my favorite, Diablo Fairy Lantern. North Peak Trail from Prospectors Gap to Devil's Elbow was a balcony trail with splendid view. Summit Trail was again steep, and it led all the way to the Mount Diablo Summit. I reached the summit around 12:40pm.

We spent some time exploring the summit area and had a long lunch break before going down from Juniper Trail. It was a lot easier coming down. Deer Flat Road, Meridian Ridge Road and Mitchell Canyon Road were all wide fire roads leading downhill. Mitchell Canyon Road later flattened out with Mitchell Creek flowing along, and the hike was very pleasant. We finally reached the parking lot around 3:45pm, ending today's 6.5-hour hike (not counting the lunch break).