Went around 11 am on Saturday 11/23. Parking lot was full. I was surprised. We parked in the upper parking area. The weather was perfect! We hiked just about 10 miles. Took 4 miles to get to the top of Hamilton which took 1 hour and 40 min.

Hamilton is always a nice hike and it was again today.  We arrived to the trailhead around 8:15am. There were 5 cars in the parking lot. The hike up was peaceful with little traffic.  We leapfrogged a group of three and a couple, a few times before reaching the summit.  On the way down, we encountered many more people who were heading up, but nothing too crazy.  When we returned to the TH around 11:45am, the parking lot was full with folks driving through asking any and everyone if they were leaving (by my count, the lot holds 44 cars not including the 2 handicapped spaces).  We moved to the upper picnic area to eat lunch, in order to free up a spot at the TH lot.  There were about 15 cars in the upper lot which was being used as overflow parking.

Get there early as parking fills up quick! This is a popular area.
The waterfall at the beginning is an obvious spot for selfies and leads to overcrowding. We skipped out.
Once you reach the top you are met with sprawling views of the gorge. It’s a good place to stop for a break and take in the scenery.
We took Hardy Creek Trail for a ,more or less, straight shot back down to true parking lot.

Great hike. Conditions were good across the entire route.

Only two minor call-outs
1. It was warm and I wish I’d brought a bit more water.
2. It was a bit buggy at the top but not so bad.

Great hike. Conditions were good across the entire route.

Only two minor call-outs
1. It was warm and I wish I’d brought a bit more water.
2. It was a bit buggy at the top but not so bad.