While there a tendancy to post a group of photos taken in the order in which they were shot, let me start with an explanatory display I captured last on the way back down from Mt Lemmon. [Click once or twice to enlarge.] There is a Tohono O'odham Indian Reservation along the route from Why to Tucson; in fact, when I stopped to get gas at Sell, I was the only "white honkey" at the station -- all of the other patrons were indian.
In the lower right corner is a comparison of the vegetation zone by altitude or latitude; in other words, the higher one drives on Mt Lemmon, the more the vegetation resembles that further north -- sometimes much further north.
This first view back down the canyon still show plenty of evidence of the desert with prickley pear cactus & yucca-like stalks from other plants.
And this next view is up the road from the turn-in to the Vista Point where the previous shot was taken.
And this is from the Molino Canyon Campground & Fee Payment Area where I noticed several RVs parked on my way back down the hill. After I had dropped my $6 for day use in the payment box, read the complete payment requirements and discovered that I was exempt as a Golden Age Pass holder. Normally I would have cussed til the air turned purple, but if I'm going to make donations, this one has a worthly name -- although the USFS labels the hill as Catalina Mtn rather than Mt Lemmon.
Didn't stay long at the next Vista Point since the buddy of the guy who crept into my photo was fouling the air with cigarette smoke. But now notice that there is more vegetation on the hillsides.
Just under the 5000' level I ran into the first two trees one finds in mountains of the west: a cedar on the left (with 2/3s of a moon above it) and a pine, probably ponderosa, on the right.
Shooting to the south one see the relection of the sun off of the metal roof in a valley to the SE of Tucson.
And shooting toward the east, the mountains in the distance appear somewhat devoid of vegetation while the flanks of Mt Lemmon have quite a few pines on their ridges at the 5000' level.
Looking due east one can see the road winding its way up the hill. At lower elevations the speed limit was 35 but as the turns got tighter at higher elevations, there where several "Slow to 20" signs.
The mountain tops in the distance include Mt Lemmon; preumably it's the one with the most antennas and electronics on its top in the center.
If one looks hard enough, he can almost make out a lake or reservoir in the distance; however, mirages are a fact-of-life on the desert. In any case, to the lower right notice the snow in the trees.
While I told a retired US Forest Service employee that the willows on the other side of the Vista Point's rock wall needed to be pruned, a close-up shows that the vegetation has thorns on it; in other words, the vegetation blocking views to the east is not willows.
The end of the road, Ski Valley, at least during the winter. It's unclear whether one can drive to the top of Mt. Lemmon during the other seasons.
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Mt. Lemmon was named for Sara Lemmon, the first white woman to reach the top of the peak. She actually gained more notoriety for her campaign to have states select State Flowers; and she was highly instrumental in the selection of the Golden Poppy as California's State Flower.
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Sara and her husband are buried in an Oakland, CA, cemetery; he was also an amateur botanist who made several notable discoveries in the range of certain flowers and trees.
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Links
- Numerous other Mt. Lemmon links
- Wikipedia article on Mt. Lemmon
- More photos from Google Images
No route today, T 15 Feb; remaining in Tucson
W 16 Feb Route: Tucson - Sierra Vista
Th 17 Feb Route: Sierra Vista - Bisbee - Douglas - Rodeo, NM
F 18 Feb Route: Rodeo - Animas - Hachita - Columbus - Anthony, NM
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