16-600: The Aspen Fire burned from June 17, 2003, for about a month on Mount Lemmon , part of the Santa Catalina Mountains located in the Coronado National Forest north of Tucson, Arizona , and in the surrounding area. It burned 84,750 acres (343.0 km) (132.4 sq mi) of land, and destroyed 340 homes and businesses of the town of Summerhaven . Damages to electric lines, phone lines, water facilities, streets and sewers totaled $ 4.1 million. Firefighting cost
32-432: A National Scenic Byway a road must have one of six intrinsic qualities. To be designated an All-American Road, a road must have at least two of the six qualities. A corridor management plan must also be developed, with community involvement, and the plan "should provide for the conservation and enhancement of the byway's intrinsic qualities as well as the promotion of tourism and economic development". The plan includes, but
48-547: A part of the honor system. Park rangers will not check for toll payments unless someone is using the park campgrounds. Anyone wishing to sightsee or travel to Summerhaven are not subjected to paying tolls. An unpaved road to the summit on the north side of Mount Lemmon starts in Oracle , which is on Arizona Route 77 north of Tucson. It offers a secondary route to the top. This route is popular with off-road 4x4 drivers and with off-road or dual-purpose motorcyclists. This road ends at
64-667: Is a favorite drive for tourists, for locals escaping summer's heat and cyclists, and has been recently designated as the Sky Island Parkway , part of the US National Scenic Byway system. The year 2010 saw the inaugural running of the Mount Lemmon Marathon . Catalina Highway charges tolls for parking, camping, and hiking. However, the tolls are only officially charged for people who are camping. Tolls for other events, such as hiking, parking, or grilling, are
80-743: The Aspen Fire of July 2003. At the peak is the Mount Lemmon Observatory , which was formerly the site of a USAF radar base of the Air Defense Command , and the building that formerly housed a military emergency radar tracking station for landing the Space Shuttle at White Sands Missile Range . Although the United States military had a presence on the mountain for several decades all their facilities have been abandoned and were given to
96-712: The Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century (TEA-21) provided $ 148 million to states so they could develop state roads to take advantage of the program. On August 10, 2005, President George W. Bush signed the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU), which provided $ 175 million to states and Indian tribes. On October 16, 2009, U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood designated 37 new roads as National Scenic Byways and five new All-American Roads. The U.S. Department of Transportation approved
112-855: The United States Forest Service . The area and buildings that makes up the Mount Lemmon Station Observatory are leased from the Forest Service by the University of Arizona. The telescopes on the mountain are still used for astronomical research today by organizations such as the Catalina Sky Survey , the Mount Lemmon Sky Center , the University of Arizona Astronomy Camp program, the University of Arizona, and
128-597: The University of Minnesota . The educational resources at the top of the mountain make it a unique research and teaching destination. The Catalina Highway , also called the Mount Lemmon Highway, as well as the Hitchcock Highway (after Frank Harris Hitchcock ), runs up the Santa Catalina Mountains from the east side of Tucson up to Summerhaven , at the top of Mt. Lemmon. The beautiful, curving road
144-560: The Catalina Highway near Loma Linda. Before the Catalina Highway was built it was the only route up the mountain. National Scenic Byway A National Scenic Byway is a road recognized by the United States Department of Transportation for one or more of six "intrinsic qualities": archeological, cultural, historic, natural, recreational, and scenic. The program was established by Congress in 1991 to preserve and protect
160-431: The designation on January 19, 2021, of 34 new roads as National Scenic Byways, in addition to 15 new All-American Roads. National Scenic Byways go through a nomination procedure. They must already be designated state scenic byways to be nominated (However, roads that meet all criteria for national designation but not state designation may be considered for national designation on a case-by-case basis). For designation as
176-414: The fire was caused by a lightning strike, but it was eventually determined to be human-caused. Mount Lemmon Mount Lemmon , with a summit elevation of 9,159 feet (2,792 m), is the highest point in the Santa Catalina Mountains . It is located in the Coronado National Forest north of Tucson, Arizona , United States. Mount Lemmon was named for botanist Sara Plummer Lemmon , who trekked to
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#1733085071396192-754: The nation's scenic but often less-traveled roads and promote tourism and economic development. The National Scenic Byways Program (NSBP) is administered by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). Some scenic byways are designated All-American Roads , which must meet two out of the six intrinsic qualities. The designation means they have features that do not exist elsewhere in the United States and are unique and important enough to be tourist destinations unto themselves. As of January 21, 2021, there are 184 National Scenic Byways located in 48 states (all except Hawaii and Texas ). The NSBP
208-510: The top of the mountain with her husband and E. O. Stratton, a local rancher, by horse and foot in 1881. Mount Lemmon is also known as Babad Do'ag, or Frog Mountain to the Tohono O'odham . It is home to the southernmost ski destination in the continental United States. Due to the elevation change from the bottom to the top, the summit of the mountain can be 20–30°F cooler than the base. It typically sees from 10 to 20 inches of monthly snowfall during
224-538: The winter, making it a cool escape and popular tourist attraction for Tucson inhabitants. Mount Lemmon is made up of Bolsa Quartzite , Dripping Spring Quartzite , and a local sandstone and conglomerate. The portions have been intruded by a Diabase Dike of the Apace Group . Summerhaven is a small town near the top of the mountain. It is a summer residence for many, but there are some year-round residents. There are many small cabins, most of which were rebuilt after
240-598: Was about $ 17 million, and the Forest Service is spending $ 2.7 million to prevent soil loss. In 2002, the year before the fire started, Congress had been requested to allocate about $ 2 million to cover the implementation of fire prevention measures in the Coronado National Forest. However, that allocation was reduced to about $ 150,000 in the Congressional budget process. There were originally suspicions that
256-554: Was established under the Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act of 1991, which provided $ 74.3 million in discretionary grants. On May 18, 1995, FHWA specified the intrinsic qualities that would serve as criteria for designating road as National Scenic Byways or All-American Roads. In September U.S. Transportation Secretary Federico Peña announced the first 14 National Scenic Byways and six All-American Roads. On June 9, 1998,
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