Back in 2012 I took a drive up the Catalina Highway through the Santa Catalina Range to Summerhaven near the 9,159 foot summit of Mount Lemmon. The Catalina Highway is a 27 mile scenic route which starts at Tanque Verde Road in northeast Tucson and ends at Summerhaven within Coronado National Forest. The Catalina Highway was constructed from 1933 to 1950 and is designated as Arizona Forest Route 39. The original Catalina Highway was considered somewhat dangerous with narrow roadways and steep cliff-faces that were a hazard to traffic. The Catalina Highway improved to the modern configuration from 1988 to 2007. I started out fairly early in the morning ascending the Catalina Highway. The lower elevations of the highway have typical plant life seen in the Sonoran Desert. The Catalina Highway ascends rapidly but never had what I would consider a steep grade. The Catalina Highway has wide shoulders which makes the road very popular with cyclists....
Because every road has a story.