My group got to the trailhead around 9 am, and the main lot was already full, and people were parking on the sides of the entrance to the lot. We ended up parking in the Hemple Creek Picnic Area, but that was pretty much full as well. It was a very nice day so we knew it was going to be busy! There are bathrooms at the trailhead and both had toilet paper. In the morning they were pretty nice but in the afternoon one of them had poop on the floor right in front of the toilet :/ The trail itself is pretty nice at the beginning as it starts off flat with a nice layer of gravel, and then about a half mile in you start to climb. The climb is pretty consistent to the top so you definitely feel it but it doesn't feel super hard. There are lots of tricky roots, rocks, and eroding stairs the whole way up, which pose ample opportunity to roll an ankle. I wore my hiking boots and was very thankful for them, otherwise I probably would've rolled mine! There will be some serious work done on the trail this summer, as evidenced by lots of 6"x4"s and bags of gravel on the side of the trail. About halfway through the hike, there is a large pile of garbage on top of a piece of machinery, which was disappointing to see. There are a couple of downed trees you have to climb over and one very large one to go under, but nothing too tricky. The trail around the lake is very well maintained and is gorgeous to walk around completely. The bugs weren't too bad because there was a slight breeze.
We got back to the car at 1:20 and there were cars parked on the side of the road for at least half a mile. My Garmin watch recorded 7 miles round trip with the loop around the lake and 1690 ft of elevation in around 3 hours and 30 minutes, not including relaxing at the lake for 30 mins. This hike is popular for a reason, and I am glad I did it! I'm excited to see what work will be done and how the trail will be improved once it is done.
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