Mount Lemmon (Santa Catalina Mountains)

Mount Lemmon in the Santa Catalina Mountains is a climbing area in Arizona, part of the Pusch Ridge Wilderness within the Santa Catalina Ranger District of Coronado National Forest. The Forest Service manages the land here. The area offers a mix of trad and sport routes, with 14 climbing routes listed. The grades range from 5.6 to 5.12-, and the median is 5.9+. Trad is the most common style, with 11 routes, and sport and mixed routes make up the rest. Some of the named routes include Cakewalk (5.6, trad), Catnip (5.9, sport) and Buzzworm's Backyard (5.12-, mixed). The climbing sits within a wilderness boundary, so plan for a trip into backcountry terrain. Spring and fall are the most comfortable seasons to visit. Typical averages from a nearby weather station at Mt Lemmon Willow Canyon show May highs around 71°F and October highs near 68°F, while winter lows there drop to about 33°F. That station sits roughly 1,400 feet below the area, so expect temperatures on the mountain to run cooler. Cathedral Rock is a hike about 1.8 miles away, and the Mystic Boulders climbing area is about 2 miles off. The Table Mountain climbing area and Sabino Canyon Recreation Area's Cactus Ramada 1 campground are both within about 6 miles.