On Walkabout On: South Franklin Mountain – Part 2

Prior Posting: South Franklin Mountain – Part 1
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As I scrambled up rocks to the summit of the 6,791 feet (2,069 meters) high South Franklin Mountain in Texas’ Franklin Mountains I came upon a concrete pathway that connects the two summits of the peak that is each capped with radio towers:

As I climbed on to the concrete path here was the first view I had of the northeast side of El Paso, Texas:

Northeast El Paso sticks out into what is known as the Tularosa Basin that is one large desert totally surrounded by mountains on each side.  The basin actually used to be a large plateau that collapsed in on itself leaving on the mountains that rim the basin.  The sandstone that formed most of the rock of that immense basin wore down over time by erosion leaving behind much of the sand that is present in the desert basin today:

From the southern most peak of South Franklin Mountain, I had a good view looking into Juarez, Mexico.  From the peak I could easily make out Mt. Cristo Del Rey through the thick smog that rolls across the border every day:

Mt. Cristo Del Rey is one of America’s most dangerous tourist attractions because the Cross that is built on the mountain is located at the point where New Mexico, Texas, and Mexico all share a common border.  Due to this bandits from Juarez regularly cross over and assault hikers that are climbing the mountain to visit the shrine.  Thus authorities advise potential walkers to only climb the mountain in a large group in order to fight off potential attackers.  Sounds like a lot of fun, huh?  Needless to say I have no plans to hike up that hill.

Anyway here is the view from the peak looking towards the west side of El Paso and out into the New Mexican desert:

Out in the distance to the west I could actually see a few of the small extinct volcanoes that caused a number of lava flows long ago that can still be seen in the desert.  I also had a good view of the Rio Grande River as it flows through the desert towards the US-Mexico border:

I just find it amazing how depleted this river becomes as it nears El Paso.  Over in Las Cruces the river is actually quite large and fast flowing, however due to agriculture between Las Cruces and El Paso the river is depleted.  By the time it hits the border between El Paso and Juarez it is almost completely dry.

From the southern peak I then proceeded to walk over to the northern most peak.  As I looked down the concrete walkway I couldn’t help but think that at some point someone must have tried to skateboard down this thing:

As walked down the pathway I noticed this yucca tree that was growing on the very ledge of the peak that was some how defying erosion and not falling into the abyss below it:

As I got to the northern peak I had a really good view over the Tularosa Basin and the day was clear enough that I could see the Sacramento Mountains about 80 miles away near Alamogordo, New Mexico:

If you look closely on the picture below, to the left you can make out the 12,000 foot peak of Sierra Blanca which is well over 100 miles away:

All the land out between El Paso and Alamogordo is owned by either the Ft. Bliss military installation in El Paso or the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico.  The lonely Highway 54 is the only way to cross this area of the basin through the military land.

Looking directly to my east I could make out the Hondo Pass area of El Paso, which near the mountain is actually quite a nice neighborhood, but further away from the mountain that the road goes, the worse the neighborhood:

Out across the desert I could make out Alamo Peak that is bordered by the military land from Ft. Bliss that is criss crossed with tank trails:

Speakin of Ft. Bliss, South Franklin Mountain offers a birds eye view inside of this large Army base:

Ft. Bliss is currently actually being expanded and the construction from this expansion can be seen out in the desert:

This expansion has actually crossed quite a bit of a jobs boom here in El Paso, which has allowed the city to escape the worst of the recession that has hit the rest of the country.

Probably the most sobering thing about climbing this mountain is that I could see just how much pollution I breathe in every day that floats over the border from all the factories over in Juarez:

The level of pollution from the other side of the border is just shocking.  When I first moved to El Paso I could actually taste the air after spending all that time in Australia breathing perfectly clean air.  It took my body a while to get used to the bad air, but I am fine with it now.  However, this one of many reasons why I cannot live long term in El Paso.

From the northern peak I also had a good view across to North Franklin Mountain as well as Trans-Mountain Road:

It was late afternoon now and the sun was beginning to set so I set off down the mountain and back to the car park.  This time I took a more direct route down the mountain in order to save time.  I followed a wash down the side of the mountain that required a lot of rock scrambling to get down:

There was actually a few points that were dry out waterfalls that required a little bit of rock climbing to get down, but nothing to dangerous.  This way down was actually a lot faster than the established trail and before I knew it I was quite a ways down the mountain:

I continued down the mountain all the time watching the sunset on North Franklin Mountain directly in front me:

It was actually quite a nice walk back down the mountain watching the sun’s last rays highlight the rocky peaks of this mountain range:

It took less than an hour to get down the mountain and I was back in the parking lot in time to watch the sunset over my Ford:

All in all a good afternoon out hiking in the Franklin Mountains.  It took about a two hours with breaks to get to the top of the mountain and I stayed up on the summit for about an hour hanging out, taking pictures, and eating a snack.  Than it took a little less than an hour to get back down the mountain for a grand total of about a 4 hour trip.  The good weather, great views, and good exercise combined to make for a great trip.