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Dirty Lemmon Loop

Mountain Biking Trail

Extreme
113.98 mi
12,408 ft
A difficult gravel road ride looping Mount Lemmon.

Cycling up the Mount Lemmon Highway is an epic challenge "that will rival some of the best climbs across the country," according to []( Hundreds of road cyclists pedal this highway every week!

But what if you want a bigger—and decidedly dirtier—challenge?

Enter the Dirty Lemmon Loop

This route creates a massive loop around the east side of the mountain with a short spur to the top of Mount Lemmon. It ascends to the top via dirt roads and descends the mountain on the aforementioned paved highway. With 114 miles of pedaling and over 11,000 vertical feet of elevation gain, this is a brutal day out in the mountains!

This ride is designed as a gravel road ride, although some lengthy sections take place on pavement. The ideal bicycle for this ride is a gravel or all-road bike, but of course, riders could complete it on a variety of other rigs.

The loop begins by climbing out of Tucson on the steeply switchbacked Redington Pass Road. The road quickly transitions from pavement to gravel as it climbs high into the Rincon Mountains above the city. The scenery surrounding you is guaranteed to keep you entertained, with beautiful mountains, the stunning saguaro-filled Sonoran Desert, and eventually, views of the city spread out below you.

Redington Pass loops around the east side of Mount Lemmon, working its way north through a rolling, remote high desert landscape.

Eventually, the route leaves Redington Pass behind with the intention of finally gaining the summit of Mount Lemmon. The bulk of the climb up the mountain follows the South Mount Lemmon Road, gaining a grueling amount of elevation on its way to Summerhaven. Once in Summerhaven, it's just a quick jaunt to the very summit, topping out at a whopping 9,157 feet above sea level!

From there, it's almost all downhill! Your reward for hours upon hours of grueling pedaling is an adrenaline-inducing high-speed rip down the tight switchbacks of the Mount Lemmon Highway, all the back down to Tucson far, far below.

Sources:

Written by Greg Heil
Created By
Strava Routes

Route and Elevation

Segments

NameDistanceElev. Diff.Avg. Grade
Pursuit de Carboni1.13 mi427 ft6.8%
Reddington Pass Uphill3.60 mi1,211 ft6.4%
redington rd, paved0.46 mi184 ft7.5%
Puncheur's Schnack0.22 mi82 ft6.9%
Lot to SSAZ Comfort Station8.87 mi1,214 ft2.6%
first 2 miles straight up2.48 mi810 ft6.2%
North San Pedro River Road Climb0.77 mi285 ft7.0%
Reddington: Just the switch backs1.20 mi518 ft8.1%
Reddington climb part 21.54 mi151 ft0.1%
reddington rollers8.16 mi423 ft0.3%
Reddington climb part 33.59 mi371 ft1.5%
Reddington Road4.04 mi289 ft1.4%
Reddington climb part 41.35 mi82 ft1.2%
Backside of Redington blast4.39 mi-676 ft-2.9%
Remote Climb2.87 mi440 ft2.8%
S Mt Lemmon Rd Climb1.15 mi295 ft4.8%
Mount Lemmon Road Climb1.38 mi348 ft4.7%
Mt Lemmon Rd Climb2.01 mi538 ft5.0%
Mount Lemmon Road Climb1.02 mi318 ft5.9%
Control Road - Mine to Fire Station6.40 mi2,287 ft6.8%
Old Mount Lemmon Road Climb0.80 mi262 ft6.2%
Old Mt Lemmon Rd Climb1.15 mi410 ft6.7%
Old Mt Lemmon Rd Climb1.18 mi535 ft8.5%
push to observatory - Hitchcock to Observatory3.22 mi1,224 ft7.1%
Ski Run Rd to Ski Valley1.36 mi482 ft6.7%
The Steep part to the top1.19 mi554 ft8.8%
Get the party started0.24 mi-92 ft-7.0%
Downhill steep part1.15 mi-515 ft-8.4%
Ski Valley to Stop Sign1.33 mi-479 ft-6.8%
Valley plunge0.60 mi-190 ft-6.0%
Last pitch!0.40 mi-125 ft-5.9%
ski run to windy point10.54 mi-1,430 ft-2.0%
bear wallow to middle bear10.11 mi-2,070 ft-3.3%
One Last Mile of Climbing1.04 mi161 ft2.7%
Going down on Mrs. Lemmon17.13 mi-4,167 ft-4.6%
finishing kick to windy point2.86 mi-600 ft-3.9%
down from windy point to molino8.27 mi-2,218 ft-5.1%
Down from Windy Point Vista13.74 mi-3,392 ft-4.7%
windy descent1.83 mi-554 ft-5.7%
hitchcock into bear canyon0.86 mi-246 ft-5.4%
GH Sprint0.20 mi23 ft1.9%
Mile 8.5 to 62.65 mi-771 ft-5.5%
gordon hirabayashi slingshot0.48 mi-157 ft-5.9%
JD-4600' Saddle0.24 mi-85 ft-6.5%
Zoom Zoom0.44 mi-125 ft-5.1%
Molino Basin to MP05.53 mi-1,467 ft-5.0%
Babad Do'ag to bottom2.78 mi-696 ft-4.7%
Alex's likes that downhill yo!2.30 mi-558 ft-4.6%
Final Kick0.63 mi-187 ft-5.6%
Mt Lemmon Rd to SR0.47 mi-33 ft-1.1%