We arrived at the trailhead around 11:30 AM and found ourselves to be the only car in the small lot. We used the WTA directions to find the trailhead and they worked great. The trailhead is marked by a large lava column and a signboard on the left hand side of the road. There are other trails in the area but since it was hot, we chose to just hike the Rimrock Lake trail. Maybe we will hike the others another time.
The trail description in the WTA guide is pretty accurate. One thing I noticed is that there is a lot of tread variety in a short distance on this hike. You start the hike on grass, which transitions to sand, and finally to rock as you climb toward the viewpoint. Along the way, the trail is lined with fragrant sage and wildflowers. There are informative signposts along the way about the landscape and wildlife in the area and the trail is in great shape. The view from the viewpoint is amazing. You can see sagebrush and canyons in every directions along with the small "pothole" lakes.
We returned to the car around 2:30 and hiked for about three hours, including frequent water stops and about 30 minutes for lunch at the viewpoint. There was one other car at the trailhead when we came back.
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