Some thick ice at the cables as seen in the picture above- it is easy to step around and lasts only for about 10m of the trail. Saw some frost in between gravel here and there. Everything on the West side, past the crest, was windy and cold. One hiker noted that his uninsulated camelbak tube had frozen. I would hazard the temperature was in the upper 20s on the summit. Weather was expected and a lite dusting of snow, but it was clear skies by and large.
Temperatures at the portal overnight were very mild and pleasant, mid to high 50s perhaps.
I still haven't figured out the permit system but it will be irrelevant come November anyways. Though 100% of the dayhike permits were supposedly reserved, the park office had 48 to give out on a holiday Monday and from what I was told had near the same number for the day before which was a Sunday. I was extremely worried about making a 4.5hr drive to possibly not end up with a permit. At 2:00pm on the dot, there were a total of 5 people waiting for permits and maybe 3 more people there shortly after.
Including all the people I encountered on the trail that day I would guess there was a total of around 50 with a majority being overnight backpackers. There were definitely people there, but I did not feel overwhelmed by the number. Numbers are expected to taper drastically from what I have been told.
Happy hiking!
