Great exercise hike with a healthy amount of inclines and declines with a very workable distance. The SoCal winter weather was perfect for this type of hike with limited shade, kept us from overheating when the trail got strenuous. If you are in decent physical shape you should be able to handle about 90% of this hike with little to no trouble…until you hit the last .4 miles to the summit. At that point this becomes a real butt kicker as the incline from there essentially becomes straight up with a little bit of scrambling on the way up. I can say I had to stop more than a few times trying to keep my pace on the way up, and had to carefully watch my steps on the way down in some sections. The view at the top is worth it though! Incredible 360 views of the entire national forest and stretching all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Definitely make sure you have the right footwear or poles for that last stretch but its well worth it and I'd highly recommend this as the first peak if you are taking the challenge to get you warmed up.