Surreal experience. Made it to the summit on 7/15.

-Road conditions are mostly fine except for last few miles on the gravel road. It has a few sections that are a bit tricky but rest is decent up to the trailhead.

-The trail itself starts off with the first 2 miles in the forest which is like any other regular trail in Washington. Once the forest ends, this is where you need a permit to continue above 4800ft. The next mile is on the boulder field, I would highly recommend bringing gardening gloves to help for support while climbing without cutting your hands. Poles will help on the way down. The final stretch is the real knee-killer. It’s all gravel and as you take one step forward, it slides you two steps back. It roughly goes for 1000-1500ft like this all the way to the crater rim. The actual summit itself is 0.5 mile to the left of where you reach the crater rim.

-But once you do reach the top, you are rewarded with 360° views all around and the crater itself feels otherworldly. Seeing the remnants of a mountain that blew up. You’ll also get to see Mt. Rainier, Adams, Hood and even Jefferson down in Oregon on a clear day

-Supplies: Sunscreen, gloves, poles, LOTS of water/fluids (we had 4.5L each and used all on the way back to the trailhead), energy bars.

-The trailhead does have campsites. So you can reach the night before, camp there and then start the hike early in the morning. Also you will need a NW forest pass to park at the trailhead or pay for the $5 day pass at the pay station.