Hiked on 5/15/21. 18.6 miles. 5,482 ft. elevation gain. Hike took 9:05. This was (expectedly) a tough one, and the first time I’ve really felt altitude hit me on a hike (even having done a couple other 11,000s in my life as well as Mt. Whitney). Probably because I didn’t sleep enough the night before, so get rest and a good amount of food in you before starting this one! I reached the parking lot at 6:15 AM or so, and although the spaces right next to the trailhead were taken, there was plenty of space in the larger Forest Falls lot 0.2 miles below. The hike is actually mostly a pretty easy slope, barring the 0.6 miles after crossing Vivian Creek and the last ~2 miles after the top of the switchbacks above High Creek Camp (which, at that point, is pretty high altitude). The one part of the hike that really surprised me was the length of the switchbacks after High Creek Camp. They don’t look like much on the trail map, but actually last for 1.3 miles, so just be prepped for that. Once you cross the ridge line at 7.0 miles, the view really opens up across to Palm Springs and Mt. San Jacinto. At that point, you cross the fire scar that impacted and closed the trail last year, but the Forest Service did a great job, and it isn’t difficult to hike through at all. The last mile or so of the hike is really cool, and looks like you’re walking on the Moon once you get above the tree line. And bring layers for the peak because it is entirely exposed and can get windy. A really fun crowd on the peak that was happy to have reached the summit, and it’s amazing how quick the trip down the mountain felt after the tough uphill climb. A cool accomplishment to reach the tallest peak in SoCal, and so glad they were able to reopen this trail so quickly!