I did it 2 years ago in Oct. You will need a truck or other high clearance vehicle, may need 4wd if conditions are nasty but I wouldn't even try it in bad conditions anyway. It's a rough road with bad wash boarding to get to the recreation area, you'll need a map cause the roads are not marked and there are lots of them. There's a ranger/volunteer at the entrance (the recreation area) who will let you know what to expect at the overlook then it's a couple more miles of rough stuff, I did it in a Wrangler and although I didn't use 4wd it was slow going and bumpy. Well worth it once you get to the overlook, we were the only ones out there that day. It's an all day trip and I mean dawn till dusk. No gates that I recall but lots of cattle and cattle guards. Oh and no reliable cell signal so go prepared.
Good luck and be safe.