I got up in dark in order to catch my 5:50am train for the 7am meetup. I was so sleepy that I missed my stop. Had to take the next train back for one stop. Tom, and his group kindly waited for me for 12 minutes. Slow going. After 2 unnecessary stops, we arrived at the trailhead shortly after 10.
A brief introduction of 10 of us, finally we hit the trail at 10:30 after another meetup group and some horses. Tom talked about the trees like last Saturday. Good to refresh my memory. We hiked through burnt area. Remnant of 2012/9/10 fire. Reached the first meadow around 12:40. Very green and flat. Not much flowers. 10 minutes later, turned to PCT. Then more trees, burnt or not, more purple asters. 
At 1:30pm reached Horseshoe meadow. Bigger. Not many more flowers. Maybe 2 weeks too late. Saw a tent. There's a small creek. However, judging by the horses going by, treat the water before drinking. From here, we hiked towards Looking Glass lake. On the way, saw some very nice aster field, a couple of small creeks lined with flowers. The lake itself is nice, but nothing special. Good camping area. 
Lucky to have both Tom and Mary on this hike, I smelled the citrusy Subalpine pine, tasted Sickletop lousewort. Also learnt the golden Hawkweed, Partridge Foot.
~8:30pm, we stopped at Full Sail tasting room and pub for dinner in Hood River. Burger and beer. Had to wait. Food is not bad. No outdoor seating. By the time we arrived at the P&R, it was already 10:30, and my next train is 11:13. Tom, the hike leader, kindly offered me a ride home, and I got home ~11:10.
