We got to the trailhead at about 5:45 a.m. The drive up was rough, but passable. Lots of potholes - a bumpy ride up. At 5:45, the lot was about 65% full, mostly with backpacker vehicles. Started the hike at 6:05 am and there were a few other groups going. We made it to the lake at about 9:20 a.m.
The first mile is easy, the second mile is easy/moderate, the third mile is a solid moderate and the rest is hard. It’s about 1,000 feet of elevation gain in the last mile.
The views all the way up are spectacular, but it pales in comparison to when you get to the lake. We found a nice pocket cove and got to spend three+ hours just us. Lots of jumping fish, bugs were not a problem then way up, but coming back at 1:40ish, the bugs were a nuisance and the flies were biting my fiancée.
The trail was in excellent condition, we saw minimal people for this being such a busy trail.
We got out of the trail at about 4 pm and there were several spots for parking and we didn’t see anyone really parked on the road.
A fantastic hike, and other hikers were courteous and it was just a perfect day!
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