Did a 2 nighter up on the trail. Went as far as Falls Creek the first night (7mi.,) back down about 3 miles for the second night. The weather was a little hot in the middle of the day (around 86 degrees) and it did take a while for it to cool off at night (down into the high 50's), but I had clear skies with gentle breezes the entire trip and it was really lovely. With the late snow melt I lucked out and caught wildflowers still showing their beauty! Service berries were a nice snack treat and the salmon berries should be fully ripe right now!
Early into the hike you will run into a rock slide that is about a quarter of a mile long followed by several somewhat sketchy, but small, washout areas. I just consider these opportunities to take life at a slower pace. :-) If you are cautious and pay attention to your footing you will do just fine.
The trail was in cleared condition up to the horse camp about 5 miles up. As you continue up to Falls Creek it starts to get very brushy in spots. Depending on your tolerance for getting your legs scratched up you might want to wear long pants. I never go anywhere without my hiking poles which were, for me, essential in being able to push aside the brush in order to see the trail, especially all those toe catching rocks. It was clear that the FS had been up there and done most of the blow/snow down log clearing, and made a bit of an attempt to clear up the brush that would get into people's eyes, but the stuff around your legs is pretty thick at times. (I just did a short day hike up to Cascade Creek on Saturday morning and the brushy path continues.)
The FS always does a fabulous job of preparing the campsites so you will have no trouble there. I was able to have campfires but, given the dry conditions even at that time, I kept them small and used them mostly as an evening deterrent to the flies. My guess is that there is a ban entirely on any flame producing item other than canister stoves right now.
Water is abundant. Honestly, even after this heat wave (I am finally writing this on Aug 6) I would not be concerned about finding plenty of opportunities to get water either creek-side or from perfect little side creeks running across the trail for the remainder of the summer. Also, all the side creeks were easy peasy to cross so no problems there.
I also feel extremely lucky to have had minimal bug interference. Some flies of varying types (yes, there were stinging ones, but they were only onery in the late evening) and almost NO mosquitoes!! The mosquitoes that did show up were only at the first camp site and they were teeny so I had no bites at all.
As for wildlife I saw no signs or sightings of anything but birds and camp robbers! Not one bit of scat anywhere. The only rattlesnake encountered was on my way out early Sunday morning. As I walked down the trail I heard the familiar "chick-a-chick" and looked off to the side and saw a juvenile about 4 feet from the trail. Living in Eastern WA and training here with rattlesnakes as constant companions I wasn't too concerned, as he was uncoiled and just looking for breakfast. Still, good reminder that I might be in what I consider my playground, but it's his home!
I would rate this trail as an easy/moderate trail. Lots of cleared path and gentle grades, for sure, in the first 5 miles. Grade continues to climb gently as you go on from there, but beware of brushy conditions, sometimes very thick, creating slower going as you pass that point. The trickier conditions are, as usual, easier to navigate going up (although those washouts are still loose,) but coming down, as mentioned, does require some careful attention.
One last comment: While it wasn't horrible, there was trash and toilet paper blooms at campsites and along the trail. I picked up what I could and packed it out on my way down. But, please, leave no trace. Thank you. :-)
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