What do you do when you find yourself alone in Oracle in the afternoon with nothing to do that day? Oracle Control Road, of course. After departing the group after the final leg of the AZFJ Chiricahua Mountains Expedition, I embarked on the OCR to hit up Mt. Lemmon and come down the south side of the Santa Catalinas into Tucson. More information on the Oracle Control Road can be found on AZFJ.org. At lower elevations the landscape along the OCR is sort of burnt-grassy (official flora term)…

…and at high elevations it turns into a full-on pine forest. This picture is taken facing south, with all of Tucson visible. I was able to spot the UA football stadium and the downtown area. Very cool! The area is usually gated off, but was open for some reason that day. This is the same area the radio towers are located.

For the most part the OCR is very smooth and fast, the driving generally is of the “baja” style…

Up by the ski resort, another gate that is normally closed was open and I ventured down the road to see what was there. To my surprise I found the relics of an old ski lift – everything including the diesel engine, chairs, pillars, etc. was just sitting there next to the road.

Sort of surprising no one has messed with all this stuff up there…

After that it was down the Mt. Lemmon Highway (also spectacular) and back into town.