This was a fantastic hike, and my friend is already talking about doing it again and bringing other friends to witness its beauty.
We arrived to the WTA coordinates at around 9:20 a.m. There were only two or three other cars there at that time. I somehow missed the description to follow the trail north-easternly pass the gate, but thankfully, some kind person made arrows with twigs pointing you in the right direction (our thanks to that person — there are quite a few forks in the road before you reach the trailhead without clear markings other than the twig art). On the way up, we only passed one couple on their way down. There were a couple patches of snow as we got closer to the summit, but they were small and easy to maneuver without any special gear. There were a couple of downed trees we had to climb over, but again, nothing impassable. When we reached the summit, there were only 2-3 small groups. We enjoyed lunch at the top of the mountain (off to the left). It's really windy up there! Make sure to bring a warm layer if you plan to spend any time up there.
On the way down, we saw quite a few groups coming up, and when we reached our car (around 1:40 p.m.) there several more cars, but still some room to park.
The trail itself is very dry and dusty, which made the descent slightly dicey at times. If you don't like peeing in the woods, I recommend stopping at a bathroom in one of the small towns before arriving at the trail, as there is no restroom.
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