I hike this mountain (Echo trail) every Saturday and Sunday and it never gets old. I am obsessed! The view at the summit is incredible and breathtaking every single time you make it up. In terms of difficulty - I can't say it's hard because I've been doing it for 3 years, but for a first timer, I can see how it is. Make sure you have decent hiking shoes and water. I wear a Camelback with 2 bottles in it and that's usually more than enough. Gloves help out, too. Also - the lot fills up on the weekends pretty quickly, BUT they let cars in every 10-15 minutes, so just keep circling around for a bit and you should be fine.