There were 7 cars in the large lot at 10:30 on a sunny Tuesday and I only saw a few people all day. The toilet was cleanish and well stocked. Middle Fork Road is in great condition.
The trail is in good shape. There is a small slide about ⅔ mile in, making the trail narrower there with a bit of a dropoff (photo below). Also, the lower mile or so of trail has some muddy, slick areas to navigate. None of the stream crossing were difficult. No snow until right before the lake and it wasn't hard to walk through. If you don't typically use poles, they won't be needed on this hike.
The lake was mostly frozen over, with a few boulders peeking up through the ice for interest. It was considerably colder right at the lake than on trail.
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