"This was an exploratory route up to Macks Peak from McFarland Canyon. I had done a slightly different route before and wanted to see if this would be better. Definitely an advanced route...involving steep slabs with possible gravel on top, vertical scree in small sections and very sharp rock. Okay, that sounds pretty bad, but for Charleston standards it was pretty typical of direct routes. " — Heartattackbruce • Jun 26, 2025

"First Charleston hike of 2025! Success! Weather was questionable for the afternoon and I wasn't entirely sure the ramp would be clear of snow but we set out anyways. Just as we summited the snow flurries began. It came in heavy as we got back on the trail and transitioned to rain as we made our way down the road. I couldn't find any sign-ins since Nov-24 so perhaps we are the first this season? Beautiful day in the mountains, can't wait for more!" — DudeAlmighty • May 1, 2025

"Mack's summit via standard route ... or best I could follow since i forgot my phone on this one. Made it to peak and cut over to standard Mack's North route for descent. Lots of gnats. " — DudeAlmighty • Oct 5, 2024

"The attached track does not have the approach recorded. It starts at the turn off from McFarland Canyon which was the approach. From the car we dropped down into the canyon and followed a dirt bike trail up the canyon to the turn off. There are some zigs and zags in the first section of the track because we were exploring an alternate, more direct route up to Macks Peak. It might be better to turn out of McFarland Canyon one gully earlier to link up with the route this track shows. We'll explore that in the future. The loop can be done clockwise or counterclockwise. If clockwise it is best to descend the way that the other track for this loop shows from July 31, 2024 summits. We felt that the route was better done clockwise...because of the easier descent at the end of the day. PLEASE be aware that the routes and tracks that I post are not always for everyone to follow. They typically require advanced scrambling skills that could involve rock climbing (typically class 4) and terrain that needs special attention and technique. Good luck! Have fun! Be safe!" — Heartattackbruce • Aug 9, 2024

"This was the first time to do this route. Sections of it had previously been done, but not the entire route. I couldn't find any record of two of the sections of it ever being done....the approach up the North Ridge and the exit out McFarland Canyon. This route is a great alternate to the "standard" routes that people follow over and over again. The TH that we used is the end of FR570. It gets very narrow with tight turns just after mile 5. You can park where the road turns right and goes down steeply into the wash. This will add about 1.5 miles to the hike. It was the first time I had done the knife edge in reverse (from the normal way of doing it) and I found it to be a little more challenging. If you are using the attached track to navigate the route, be aware that there is an exploratory zigzag on the knife edge section that you don't have to do. Use your intuition to straighten out the route. The knife edge section can also be longer if going the opposite way to what we did. Don't exit where this track shows us entering it, climb up the wall and continue on. If you continue, you will have to go down a very steep, long slab to get off the knife edge. It is advisable that you ca..." — Heartattackbruce • Jul 31, 2024

"From Mack’s canyon rd . About a five mile gravel rd would definitely recommend high clearance I made it with a 2wd rav 4. Just walked up one of the gully’s to gain the ridge then just walked the ridge up to the base of Mack’s and walked up the band of tree line . Someone put a rope up there which is unnecessary I thought as it gets steeper after the rope . Pretty good short hike overall though . 14/100. Gps track didn’t record so don’t have that for this one. " — joshortman • Oct 25, 2022

"Did the standard route to Mack's Peak, then the knife-edge traverse to Mack's North and did a 170' rappel off of Mack's North to have fun and avoid a sketchy, loose descent route. Fun day!" — acekelly • Jun 19, 2022

"9.26.18....Harlan Stockman led me on my first ascent of Macks Peak today. It was an amazing thrill ride all packed into 3.7 miles and 1,800’ vert gain. We jammed up the class 1+ hill at a fast and slightly cruel “Harlan” pace which provided a great strong workout for me. The final climbing was up a ramp filled with loose rock and then turned around the corner from hell with more loose rock next to a lot of exposure. I was terrified inside and just white knuckled any solid limestone rocks next to me. Harlan stayed close by with protection and guidance as he always does. I was so happy to get to the top, I gave the summit a big giant HUG! By doing this peak I completed a LV 15-10K Peak Challenge." — paula.raimondi • Sep 26, 2018

"Took a tougher steeper route at the first gully before the standard route and found a geocache along the way. Descended the much easier much less steep standard route. 2h 20m round trip" — jasonj • Aug 16, 2015

"Decided to try a new route today - Mack's Traverse. Took the standard route up to Mack's Peak, then traversed the gnarly class 4+ ridge over to Mack's Peak North. There was an awesome knife-ridge & some fun climbing along the way. Fun day!" — Kevin • May 17, 2013