We started quite early at the trailhead, at 04:40am, it was nice weather but very humid, very dark, lot of solitude; just broken with the beam of the headlamp. The trail was slightly wet from the previous day of rain, but not muddy, only slightly soft ground. The hike was brisk but very pleasant, with the view changing with the clouds coming in over Sierra Madre below. At sunrise the city below had at all but completely disappeared, and the sea of clouds covered everything except the mouth of the valley, a peak towering in the far distance, sky mesmerised with the pinkish-orange glow of the sun rising in the east. Lovely sight indeed. With higher altitude the cold started to bite the skin, and irritate the senses, but in a kind way. When we had about 900 feet or thereabouts, the winds from the north came over the summit stealing the comfort of the warm and humid valley, winter is upon us clearly at six thousand feet or so. Just as forecasted cold and windy conditions at the peak, didn't make the sandwiches desirable as one had hoped and thought about for the last miles towards the top, more just a source of necessary energy for the travel down. Lovely views. Enjoyable hike. Good mornings work.