All of these other reviews left me VERY confused about what this hike would be like. Here's my breakdown.
There is a small, free parking lot on Airport road before you get up to the $3 lot. There are only a few spots here but we were lucky enough to snag one around 6:50am because someone was leaving!
From here, there are a few trail options. There is the Summit trail which takes about 5 minutes and gets you up to a beautiful vantage point. Then there's the Airport Loop which is the 3.3 mile loop. And then there's another trail--I know nothing about that one. :)
So we first did the short Summit trail hoping to see the sun rise over the mountains. It's steep, smooth rock to get up there, but there is a handrail. There were a surprising number of people up there. It was FREEZING and windy on this early November morning, despite the fact that it would be 70 later in the day.
We then returned down and went to check out the other Vista point which was lovely. From there, we headed onto the Airport Loop trail going clockwise. (If you want to go counterclockwise, you have to go back down to the parking lot, cross the street, and get on the trail there.
This trail is generally flat (not completely, but generally) but VERY rocky, narrow, and there are pretty steep drops on one side. I'm a seasoned hiker and found it slightly nerve-wracking in parts, mostly because we had our older, little dog with us and I was terrified that she would slip off the trail and never be seen again. We wound up carrying her a lot of the way.
As soon as we started along the trail, the sun came up and it got very warm very fast. It was shocking. That's why we were glad to have gone clockwise, so that the second half of the hike when the day grew even warmer we would be in the shade.
The vistas along the way are spectacular and every few minutes we had to stop to take photos. When you turn the bend and start heading to the other side, it changes completely and is less scenic, but still lovely.
IMPORTANT: Around this point in the hike, we came to an UNMARKED FORK. Bear left to stay on the Airport Loop trail. We went right and then were on some other trail that was next to the airport fence, so we wound up having to backtrack. I've included a photo of the fork so that you don't make the same mistake.
The Summit + the Loop took us about 2 hours. I definitely don't recommend doing this with kids or dogs. I also recommend hiking shoes with good grip. read more