Mammoth Rock via Ron Coleman Trail South in Franklin Mountains State Park, TX

Hike Mammoth Rock via Ron Coleman Trail South Franklin Mountains State Park, TX

Class 3 4.8 miles 2400 gain 2-4 hrs Out + Back Feb 19, 2018
Effort
Beauty
Personality
Solitude

Mammoth Rock via Ron Coleman Trail South GPX Track

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This hike ended up being a very pleasant surprise, despite the first half mile being covered in graffiti and first-time hikers attempting a Class 2 steep trail. The Ron Coleman Trail runs from the Franklin Mountains State Park visitor center to the Woodrow Bean Transmountain Road that separates the Franklin Mountains as north and south. Both trailheads have the highpoint being South Franklin Mountain, but the trail from the Transmountain Road seems a lot less fun than the southern route. Anyway, after leaving the visitor center, like I said, a steep trail leads to the Franklin Mountains ridgeline and then north along the ridge, where the crowds die out almost completely. Unless you did research, unlike me, you won't be expecting chains to be set up to aid in climbing the Class 3 ridgeline. There were three sets of these chains, and the longest of them leads to feature called "The Window". After getting past the chain areas, the trail mellows out significantly and you can head to the summit of South Franklin Mountain, and although I think the true summit is gated for a radio tower, you can get pretty close.

After summiting, I noticed Mammoth Rock a few hundred feet below the Ron Coleman Trail, but at the time, I didn't realize northern section of the Ron Coleman Trail passed by the feature. So, I scrambled unnecessarily on a Class 3 ridge to get to Mammoth Rock before finding out, but it was definitely fun. From the base of Mammoth Rock, continue to the southeast gully on a use trail that leads to a reasonable Class 3+ (maybe Class 4?) climb that takes you to safer ground and then to the summit. It's a fun scramble, but definitely the hardest thing of the day. Head back along the Ron Coleman Trail to the visitor center.

PEAKS ON HIKE
Elevation (ft) / Prominence (ft)
Peaks on hike
Elevation
Prominence
1
Mammoth Rock
6502 ft
n/a rise
2
South Franklin Mountain
6791 ft
1511 rise

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Starting along the popular Ron Coleman Trail.
Starting along the popular Ron Coleman Trail.
Image 1 from gallery
Image 2 from gallery
Class 2 Ron Coleman Trail.
Class 2 Ron Coleman Trail.
Looking back down the Ron Coleman Trail from the ridgeline.
Looking back down the Ron Coleman Trail from the ridgeline.
Franklin Mountains ridgeline to South Franklin Mountain.
Franklin Mountains ridgeline to South Franklin Mountain.
Ron Coleman Trail along the ridgeline.
Ron Coleman Trail along the ridgeline.
Image 7 from gallery
Looking back along the Ron Coleman Trail.
Looking back along the Ron Coleman Trail.
Image 9 from gallery
Image 10 from gallery
Approaching the scramble section.
Approaching the scramble section.
First chain.
First chain.
Looking back before staring the scrambles.
Looking back before staring the scrambles.
Second chain section, the longest one. The Window is just at the top of this.
Second chain section, the longest one. The Window is just at the top of this.
The Window. The third set of chains is just to the left of it.
The Window. The third set of chains is just to the left of it.
Looking down from the top of the third set of chains.
Looking down from the top of the third set of chains.
Continuing along the Ron Coleman Trail. no more scrambling to the summit of South Franklin Mountain.
Continuing along the Ron Coleman Trail. no more scrambling to the summit of South Franklin Mountain.
Looking back along the Ron Coleman Trail.
Looking back along the Ron Coleman Trail.
Mammoth Rock peeking out below that big hump there.
Mammoth Rock peeking out below that big hump there.
Continuing up toward South Franklin Mountain. The high point is the right set of towers.
Continuing up toward South Franklin Mountain. The high point is the right set of towers.
Looking toward Mammoth Rock from as close to the summit of South Franklin Mountain as I could legally get.
Looking toward Mammoth Rock from as close to the summit of South Franklin Mountain as I could legally get.
Mammoth Rock. Follow this ridgeline for the fun Class 3 scramble. You can go along the Ron Coleman Trail to get to the base instead, if you're not feeling this scramble.
Mammoth Rock. Follow this ridgeline for the fun Class 3 scramble. You can go along the Ron Coleman Trail to get to the base instead, if you're not feeling this scramble.
Base of Mammoth Rock.
Base of Mammoth Rock.
Gully to ascend Mammoth Rock (Class 3/4)
Gully to ascend Mammoth Rock (Class 3/4)
Looking down the gully. From here, it's easy to get to the Mammoth Rock summit.
Looking down the gully. From here, it's easy to get to the Mammoth Rock summit.
Mammoth Rock summit, looking north to North Franklin Mountain.
Mammoth Rock summit, looking north to North Franklin Mountain.
Looking eat toward South Franklin Mountain.
Looking eat toward South Franklin Mountain.

Hire me or show me some love!

Hire/refer me as a web developer or send me a few bucks if you find my site useful. I’m not sponsored, so all fees are out-of-pocket and my time preparing trip reports is unpaid. I really appreciate it!