This was one to remember! I did this hike with three other friends who were interested in checking this off their hiking bucket list. We decided we wanted to do the hike in one day instead of backpacking and so chose this trail as the only real feasible option to do so. We started at 7:30 (a little behind schedule) and the lot was already just about full. The easy half mile in the beginning quickly gave way to non stop elevation gain up through switchbacks. We took ample rest breaks throughout the journey so we could all stay fresh. With the quick increase in elevation came amazing views early on in the hike which lasted throughout. To the west, a blanket of white clouds spread out all the way to the ocean and was only pierced by a few taller nearby peaks suck as Baldy. We watched all day as the clouds moved further inland, eventually making their way up through the pass between Gorgonio and Jacinto in towards the palm desert. The weather was nice and cool the whole way up, which felt great given the strenuous climb we were undertaking. The last mile of the hike was pretty difficult, with a steep incline and no shade. We eventually summited and took the obligatory photos with the summit sign and signed the log book. While there was cloud cover to the west, eastward and south were clear as day and we could see all the way to the Salton Sea and beyond and out towards Nevada to the east. It was pretty cold at the top and the wind was whipping around a lot (forcast stated 20-30 mph gusts), so we took a quick rest in the wind break made of rocks, changed our socks and started the trek down. This was of course much easier but it was still a long way. We ended up hiking the last ~3 miles in the dark as it took us a bit longer to summit than planned, but we were prepared with headlamps and poles. One item of note was that we saw a pair of glowing eyes just off the trail in the trees near the end and after further inspection looked like it was a bobcat possibly. One member of the group was a bit freaked out by that! We finally made it down to the creek and walked the last half mile to the car which seemed to take forever! It was an amazing hike and everyone had a great time.

The only bummer was we got a $70 parking ticket for “failing to park in a parking stall”, which, technically, was true but we only realized when we got back that it wasn't a spot. It was very deceptive as it looked exactly like a spot, not a huge deal but keep an eye out!