First and foremost, drive an SUV if possible as the road to the trailhead is a bumpy and dirt one that my low profile vehicle could never navigate. Fortunately, my hiking buddy drove us in her large SUV and we were just fine. We hiked on a Thursday and there was next to no one on the trails with us most of the day. It was a long hike but so beautiful and scenic along the way. At one point, a deer jumped in front of us on the trail which was AWESOME to witness! I highly recommend taking the slight detour at 7.2 miles which takes you to a beautiful overlook. You'll have great photo ops on the stone bench! The summit was very pretty and definitely worth the trek up. Again, the hike was long but the distance wasn't a problem. The altitude never really bothered me but my friend was feeling it toward the summit. Just keep hydrated and slow down if you start feeling dizzy. Good luck and HAVE SO MUCH FUN!!! San Jacinto is next on my list and I'll be summiting on July 26th.