Our maiden hike and it was a hard one. Long. Hot. Exhausting. Great! The views were amazing and we came across a black bear, which was both terrifying and exhilarating! Most of the hike is pretty gradual and manicured until the last mile or so, which is definitely the hardest part of the whole climb. We used walking sticks the whole hike and they were extremely helpful. The whole hike was over 10 miles total and took us 5 hours without much stopping, except for short water breaks. I just forgot to start the app.