I'm reviewing the hike description from the website as I write - and the route description in it doesn't sound like I was following the same approach trail at all! I pulled off Hwy 14 to the well-labeled parking lot north of the highway, following the route from the trailhead up the access road along the west side of 8 Mile Creek for one mile (watch for poison oak under the oak trees). (Didn't see the waterfall or the apple tree mentioned in the hike description, but there was a lot of Amelanchier (aka serviceberry aka shadbush) in bloom.) There is a local-area map at the trailhead that was helpful to get oriented. The trail junctions are well-marked with trail names and arrows, making it easy to find and follow the Vista Loop trail, (which I did), or alternatively continue north to the Dalles Mnt Ranch Trailhead.
The route I followed was essentially a lollipop loop - up and back on the access road, and after crossing Eight Mile Creek, I left the trees behind for expansive vistas of desert parsley, balsamroot, lupine, and bunch grass - with Mount Hood and the Columbia River providing a glorious background for the up-close wildflower display. The loop crosses under power transmission lines, but otherwise signs of civilizations are few and far between. I could tell from tracks left in what used to be muddy sections of the trail (dry and solid on the day I hiked the loop) that the route also gets used by horses and mountain bikes, but I encountered just a handful of other hikers. It looks like state parks might have mowed a ~6 foot wide swath right along the trail, which would help keep any ticks - or dew - off a hiker's socks. Also, there are informative signs along the trail talking about events ranging from the ice age floods to the much-more-recent homesteading history of the area.
Be prepared to deal with windy conditions! And listen/watch for the meadowlarks.
Bonus stops: Other nearby units of Columbia Hills State Park include Horsethief Butte and Horsethief Lake. There's a short, ADA accessible trail at Horsethief Lake called the Temani Pesh-wa Petroglyph Trail. It displays several petroglyphs that were removed from their original location where they were going to be inundated by the backwater of the John Day Dam. Interpretive signs explain history and why this display of petroglyphs was built.
The famous petroglyph She Who Watches is nearby, but access to it is behind a locked gate; appointments are available from State Parks on Fridays and Saturdays at 9:00 for ranger-led access to this important Tribal site. (Tribal people can also arrange access at other times.)
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