I was very young and I had to have my brother find the key in the water temple for me, and I was too scared to play the shadow temple myself. I belived it was a momentous occasion when I found out how to defeat a Deku Scrub.
As a kid I found the water temple ridiculously difficult. My undeveloped brain couldn't handle all the floors and pathways and puzzles and keys and wetness.
I also found the forest temple very challenging.
The rest of the temples I was able to get through with average difficulty.
I played the Master Quest version before the regular one, so it's safe to say my brain hurt quite a bit. Then after playing MQ, I played the regular version a few years later, which seemed ridiculously easy. And when I first encountered the Forest Temple, it took me a couple of days to suck up my courage and play through it. That temple scares me a lot more than the Shadow Temple, for some reason.
It was not too difficult for me at first, as I played and beat Majora's Mask beforehand, which is similar in gameplay to OoT. However, I did get really "lost" on the part that you had to play Saria's Song for Darunia (and all the stuff that came along with that). Luckily, my brother eventually got past that part while I was at school . Aside from that, I had a bit of a hang up in Spirit Temple, believe it or not. Heh heh...
Hope you bear with me for a little walk down the memory lane.
I had first laid eyes on the game as a little kid who had only played Super Mario 64 before-hand. Once, my brother was playing what would go on to become probably the most fascinating thing in my whole childhood after begging our pops to get it seeing all the crazy hype there was for it. It was everywhere: Magazines, TV, stores, you name it.
In a place as small as the one we live in, it was quite a rare thing for anything to be so big, but OoT was.
So, after that intro, I'll finally answer the question: How hard did I find Ocarina of Time my first time through?
Easy, it was a nightmare.
Not as much because of the game itself, but because I was extremely unexperienced at it (not to mention that I was very easy to impress).
I'll never forget my first time facing Gohma: I turned off the 64 in complete fear of her and ran away just like that. Don't even get me started on the Water and Shadow Temples.
I just noticed how extreme some of that sounds, but I really get worked up when I'm asked about this, so sorry for any inconvenients my little walk sown the memory lane caused.
from what i remember i thought it was pretty hard
of course me and a friend went from the forest temple to the spirit temple in a day using the online walkthroughs...
Considering the only Zelda games I had ever played before Ocarina of Time were the original Zelda and Zelda 2, it was pretty easy to me. Even the water temple seemed easy to me. The hardest part for me was
figuring out that you needed to feed Jabu Jabu a fish (probably spent hours of gameplay on that)
I found it brutal. Absolutely brutal. I've stated many times ont his site how I didn't even know how to get to the Deku Tree. I spent like an hour wander Kokiri Forest not knowing what to do and I gave up. Then, in the Deku Tree, I didn't know how to get into the Basement, or how to beat the Boss. in Dodongo's Cavern, I didn't know about bombing the eyes, Jabu-Jabu was just plain confusing and had to use a walkthrough.
Then for the Adult, I'm pretty sure I used a complete walkthrough with the first three Temples. Strangely enough, the last two (Shadow/Spirit) I found a lot easier. I think it also took me a little bit to beat Ganon.
Acually i'm still on it and it has been one of the hardest videogames i've ever played. I've spent a few months getting to the shadow temple without my brother erasing it.
sadly i think i used a guide through half of it. that was like a year ago too. even with the guide it took 3 hours to complete the water temple but now i can do it in a hour which is my normal time for dungeons. there are a lot of things i was like "what am i supposed to do now!!!!" when i didnt use a guide, same with MM.
Well I was seven at the time so I thought it was the most difficult cryptic game ever. I spent like a week running around the Kokiri forest, took me hours to beat the Deku tree. But now I play it and I'm like, "Omg I had trouble with that part?" It still sometimes challenges me, but nothing like before, haha. King Jabu Jabu's belly was a NIGHTMARE. And I got so stuck in the water temple I started a new account and my uncle had to help me beat Ganondorf's castle. I beat Ganon and Ganondorf with ease though, but by that time, I was like two years older. (I had given up on the game). So I guess on my first play through it was challenging, but after you get a little older it's not quite as hard.
. Aside from that, I had a bit of a hang up in Spirit Temple, believe it or not. 
Heh heh...
