Weather was perfect and the wildflowers are amazing right now.  I've hiked this trail a gazillion times and I love it, even though it gets a bad rap because you have to share the road with ORV.  Here are the main points you need to know before hiking this trail:

• If you start at the parking area by the main Maple Springs trail sign, it's a 21 mile round trip to the top.  For the 9.5 mile version, follow the directions in the hiking guide.
• You will be hiking along a road that is open for ORV. I highly recommend doing this on a weekday to avoid too much of that. It also helps to start early in the morning. It seems the ORV set doesn't get there until closer to 10 or 11 AM.
• The road is paved for a bit but then turns to rough dirt. You really can't do it in a normal car, but I get there in a small SUV and it's fine.
• The summit itself is covered in towers and isn't amazing, but the view is spectacular from the top and pretty much the entire way up.

Happy hiking!