Stunning, gorgeous hike. This place is amazing. The route is super fun.
Snow-free trail all the way to the summit. The trail is not too hard to follow, but it's a decent amount of scree in the last two miles. No running water past Peggy's Pond.
I started at 6 am to beat the crowds and heat. Summited at 9:40, took a long break, and started down. It was getting real hot by noon but I was back under canopy by then, and got to the car by 2. I got some bug bites but hardly saw any bugs flying around outside of the few swampy spots.
That crux section on the ridgeline was fine with a light pack and climbing experience. I could see it being dicey if you're carrying some weight or haven't done that kind of thing before, but as the WTA description says it's "uncomfortable but passable". It's basically a squeeze-through move with narrow footing but you have an excellent wall to hug/hold as you do it.
The gravel road to the TH is 7+ miles and is perhaps the best unpaved forest road I've been on. No potholes; just smooth, even gravel. There was one rocky washout 3.1 miles before TH that my sedan has no problem with.
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