Love this hike!! This only my second time taking the trip. It's been a good year or two since the last time I went and it was a much better experience because the weather (temperature) was perfect! While the out and back trial isn't extremely long, a little over 2.5 miles round trip, I would say it's a "hard" trail difficulty wise. It's a gradual incline the whole way up to the hot springs with very few moments it flattens out without an incline of elevation. Additionally, there are a lot of rocks on the trail, so you have to have good footing or take some walking sticks. My daughter who is 13 went with me and she did great. However, if it had been hotter she would not have enjoyed it. She took a few short rests on the way up, but almost ran the trail going back down! When we got to the hot springs it was pretty crowded, not excessively where we couldn't find a spot, but a lot of people were there and the traffic was a consistent flow. There's quite a mix of the crowd with some college age students, families, couples and solo hikers. Everyone is friendly and seemed to be respectful of each other. One group had a speaker playing music, but it wasn't obnoxious and didn't bother me. Also, remember, if you take children i believe clothing is optional, so they may get an eye full. Haha The upper pools are extremely hot and then as you go down the temperature is more tolerable to submerse your whole body. My daughter only wanted to put her feet in and even that it was still a little too hot for her at times. Just be cautious. We packed a lunch and sat there soaking for a little while. Even thought daughter didn't get in the whole way she still really enjoyed herself and said the hike was definitely worth it! A couple more mentions, there are a lot of dogs on this trail as they're allowed and even off leash. Parking is VERY limited. If you have more of an SUV type vehicle I suggest driving that. There is a side where you have to drive over a curb to park along the side of the road and we saw one car stuck! Get there early if you can, otherwise you might have to walk a little ways to the trail head. It was a great mother-daughter date and I'll be back again. read more