hit mt. lemmon uphill as far as the weather allows. the sweet spot turnaround is around the 16.5 mile mark altho rode all 28 miles to the top in april.
as mentioned, the east side saguaro national park 9 mile rolling loop is phenomenal. do it at least twice because you'll regret it if you don't. both this and the mt. lemmon hillclimb are prob the best two rides in the entire area of tucson. if you have more time or location, the west gates pass rd ride is sweet as is sentinel peak. can do both same ride. kitt peak hillclimb is roughly an hour’s drive south but def worthy. the “loop” is def your best bet to get in decent miles if not hitting anything not mentioned above. the "loop" gets you to a few of those destinations.
top of gates pass
two pics of the loop westside-near dtown tucson
the awesome, must see "cycling chapel" at the sw corner of the n. granada ave/w. davis st intersection...just north of the w. st mary's/w. 6th st area and a short distance from the loop.
four pics of the mt. lemmon climb
saguaro national park-east unit and the one-way 9-mile loop.