We had a late start, around 11:30 and the parking lot was full.  The trail itself was in pretty good conditions.  Getting to the balcony was easy, there was some snow, but it was easily manageable with just your hiking shoes.   

We decided to head up to the Peak, and once we got around 3600 feet, there was lots of snow.  Snow was hardpacked and easily doable with hiking shoes but suggest that you bring crampons.  There were some slippery areas, heading up.  

Hiked on Sunday. In the treeline, there are a lot of fallen needles and moss and it can be a little easy to lose track of the trail, but just keep an eye out for regular poles with "DHPT" signs as well as some bright plastic orange ribbons tied around tree trunks. 

Up to the Balcony, there were only patches of snow, but once you pass the Balcony, there is consistent snow. The trail is steep enough from that point that you'll get better traction with microspikes and poles. This trail doesn't provide a lot of viewpoints but it's a good workout. 

Up at the top of the peak, you can see one of the Granite Lakes, but as a previous TR noted, do not get too close to the edge. It's difficult to know where the cornice starts. 

4 hours from parking lot to Summit with fresh snow that required breaking trail last mile. Post-holing at times and a steep ascent for last 1 1/2 miles. Beware of potential cornice on North side at the summit so don’t venture too close to the edge while looking for a a view down to Granite Lakes. Was windy today and be prepared with layers to stay warm. Trail from parking lot to the balcony is very uneven due to lots of hikers breaking through the surface on the way up. Definitely suggest microspikes for most of this trail.

Road is completely clear and seems to be plowed with regularity. Arrived at the trailhead at 8 a.m. and saw two other cars in the lot, but I didn’t see anyone else on the trail.

The trail is completely snow covered. It’s compact and icy for the first 4 miles (micro spikes are a must) and becomes lighter after that. You don’t need snow shoes for the upper portion (I was able to do it with just spikes/regular boots), but they would certainly make the experience easier.

I’m honestly not sure if I made it to the top of the peak. Around 4 miles, the trail diverged into a Y. After exploring both options, I opted to go left. I think it may have spit me out on the private property section of the trail, but there were no signs indicating that.

The right pathway seemed to be an unofficial trail made by previous hikers because it led deeper into the woods w/ lots of obstacles. I’ll probably come back in the summer when it’s easier to find the actual trail.

Regardless of if I went the wrong way, the views were beautiful, and I got to enjoy total silence. Beware: The left trail is a very steep climb straight up the mountain for about 1.5 miles.

There was some new snowfall yesterday as there was 4-5” of new snow at the top of Dirty Harry’s Peak. Snow became consistent on the trail past the intersection with the upper balcony. The creek crossing at the museum was easy to cross as the rocks were above the water. A few other groups of hikers blazed a trail through the snow before me this morning, so there was a nice track. Some of the vegetation was encroaching the trail with the weight of the snow, which was a pain. I put gaiters on but left the spikes off. Snow was getting a bit slushy on the way down, so when it freezes tonight it’s going to be icy. It’s always a good idea to bring micro spikes with you on every winter hike, as you never know what conditions one may run into. Also the upper trail/road is steep in places. Hiking poles were helpful on the decent. Fog kept hanging around, but I did get a few peek-a-boo views.