The road to Eight-mile trail is in pretty decent shape, with the exception of a few dips lined with large rocks. Most vehicles can probably make it past them with care, but higher ground clearance will definitely make things easier.
The first part of the trail winds through the trees and up into the Boulder Creek Wilderness. As you climb up, you start to encounter more large and old-growth trees and snags, especially past the wilderness boundary. The size of some of these specimens is impressive!
As you approach 3 O'clock Rock, you get sudden views of the valley and peaks all around. But the climb isn't done yet. The trail is easy to follow and well traveled as far as 3 O'clock Rock, but past the rock things get much more difficult. After skirting the bottom edge of the rock, keep a careful eye out for the trail among all the ferns and greenery. The trail climbs much more steeply as you re-enter the trees, with lots of root ladders and switchbacks. We encountered a couple here who had wandered off the trail and gotten lost. If you lose the trail, backtrack and look carefully for a switchback you may have missed.
The trail also gets much muddier from here on out, with large patches of deep mud and no real good way around. I'd recommend waterproof shoes with good traction and ankle support, and was grateful for my boots.
On the pleasant side, wildflowers were out in abundance, especially once we got above the forest. There are many small streams running down the mountain as well, the water creating large, empty expanses of rock with no soil or vegetation. (It can be easy to lose the trail on these crossings, fortunately someone has placed rock piles to help find your way.) The water pools into small, clear ponds, with lots of frogs. And mosquitoes, bugs were out in abundance when we were up there.
It's all worth it at the top, though, with beautiful views of Three Fingers, along with many other mountain peaks and valleys.
Round trip hiking time for us was 4.5 hours.
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