Prescott to Tucson -- need local advice!
 

Hi tourers (touristas?),

I've been wanting to do some touring for a while now, and I have the opportunity to ride my bike from Prescott, AZ to Tucson over the course of 5 days, and I am trying to figure out how to make it into a decent mini-tour. I have never really done this before, so I need your help!

I feel pretty OK about Prescott to Wickenburg, and from Florence to Tucson, but I am worried about the part that contains Phoenix in between. How the heck do I ride through or around Phoenix? Would I be better off going way around by going to Payson and taking the Beeline highway to Mammoth?

I would appreciate the advice of anyone who's familiar with central AZ roads, or who can point me towards a good resource. I'll post in the AZ forum, too; just thought this would be a good place to get some feedback.

I'm not a local but I have toured through part of that area (Phoenix to Tucson). If you are not averse to climbing I would highly recommend going through the Tonto National Forest. It is spectacular, especially the Apache Trail. But it's definitely a lot of climbing compared to, for example, going via Wickenburg - Florence - Tucson.

This is the route I took. See bottom of page for elevation profile.

Prescott, Jerome, Camp Verde, Strawberry, Payson, Pumpkin Center, Lake Roosevelt (highway 188), Globe, then route 77 into Tucson.

I lived in Phoenix for 14 years (until last year.) I'm mostly familiar with the western part of town. In spite of being a big city, it's not too difficult (and scary!) to navigate through Phoenix. I rode my bicycle without any incidents and I found people to be generally courteous with me. I heard that wasn't the case 20 years ago, but a lot has changed. First, have you seen this map to plan your route?

http://www.azmag.gov/Documents/MAG_2...thways-Map.pdf

I am going to explain the part from Western Phoenix to Tempe (look at the map.)There are different ways of doing it, but this is what I'd recommend.

* From Wickenburg, I'd take Hwy 60 (Grand Av.) going southeast to Cholla Rd. (near the border of Sun City and Youngtown)
* Jump on Cholla St going east until you reach the Arizona Canal. You can ride on both sides of the canal. I found it easier to be on the left side (going east) as it takes you through more tunnels. Get off on 64th St. (Scottsdale/PHX) - This will be a long nice stretch!
* Go south on 64th St.
* At the intersection of 64th. St. and Thomas Rd., get on the Bike Pathway (marked red on the map) and continue south going through Papago Park - You want to get to Tempe Town Lake (Mill Av.)

I get into unfamiliar territory from here but Tempe and Chandler are bicycle friendly cities, so the rest should be a no-brainer. The goal is to find the best (safest!) route to get to the intersection of Arizona Ave. and Hunt Hwy where you will find the major junction to Hwy 87 going south to Coolidge/Florence and then into Hwy 79 into Tucson. I hope someone else will jump in and help with the best routing through Tempe and Chandler.

Notice that many parts of the canal are unpaved but it's smooth dirt through most of it. Just plan on adequate tires. The route above is very safe and pleasant route through the most populated parts of Phoenix.

As you know, once you get to Wickenburg it's nice and flat through Phoenix and pretty much all the way down to Tucson. You climb 1,000 ft. over 100 miles, so it's not bad at all.

You don't mention the time of the year. I hope this is something you're thinking of doing in the fall (Oct./Nov.) I would find it quite unpleasant to do this tour anytime between now and the middle of October.

Go this way ^

Thanks a lot for this advice, especially the tip about taking the canal. Actually, I'll be doing this ride in a couple of weeks. I realize that the weather is going to be . . . ugh, but I ride year-round in southern AZ, so I'm prepared. It may be the main reason if I decide to go the other way, although I worry a bit about the elevation. I figure I can ride about 70 miles per day loaded down in a hot, flat setting, but I am much less sure about my daily travel abilities while climbing. For reference, I can ride my touring bike unloaded to the top of Mt. Lemmon, but my average uphill speed is really, really slow, like 3-5 mph. So it takes forever.

Thanks to everyone else who responded, too. This is very helpful.

Thanks, that's great info. As a matter of fact, I am worried about climbing. Although I suppose if I were starting from Prescott, I'd eliminate that big uphill chunk from your route, wouldn't I?

You would eliminate a lot of the early up and down, but there'd still be plenty of climbing involved. I believe Lake Roosevelt is at about 2200 ft., and you have to climb to over 5000 south of Globe, plus lots of other ups and downs before you even get to Lake Roosevelt.

Going through the Tonto NF you're going to climb. Much, much less of that if you go via Wickenburg. Can't tell you much else about that route though because I've never ridden over there. I'd suggest you create a free account on ridewithgps.com and map out a few possibilities. You'll get an idea pretty fast of how much climbing to expect. If sometime in the future you decide to take on more hills, consider that Apache Trail. It really is a gem.

If the heat is not an issue, the route through Wickenburg/PHX may be the way to go. The other route presented will be (I think) about 70 miles longer and very hilly, but better climate and scenery through most of it. Should you decide to do the Payson/Globe route, you may want to give yourself a couple of extra days to complete your tour. Either way, don't forget to post pics here when you're done. :)

If you're going from Florence to Tucson via Hwy 79 I must warn you it has no shoulder and the speed limit is 65mph but people do more like 80mph. This is a very dangerous road with tons of traffic. But if you do decide to go Hwy79 then you can take Park Link Road at around Mile Marker 101, that is 18miles long, and connects to I-10. You'll end up just a mile or two north of Red Rock and another ten miles down the frontage road you end up in Marana. I live off of the Marana exit about two miles. Cold beer is in the fridge!
Tucson pretty much begins in Marana. From Marana you could ride the back roads that goes through Saguaro National Park and end up coming out either South side of Tucson or all the way in Ajo. It's very pretty taking the back roads (Sandario Rd.) It also goes to Gates Pass or Old Tucson.

Awesome. Thanks for the reminder about Park Link Road, and taking Sandario. I'll probably do that unless I am complete toast.

I actually live off of Oracle, so 79 south of Marana is familiar territory to me. Ask me about the time I bought a pair of skis in Marana and brought them home on my bike :)

Please do tell about the ski transport! Wait, let me get a beer.

Here's a picture, once I got home:
http://farm6.static.flickr.com/5107/...9382e948ce.jpg
20101210_SP_APR_0057 by Footsore Rambler, on Flickr

The fun part was that I didn't have my touring bike handy, for some reason. They were actually pretty secure, despite how it looks.

Very nice. Looks a little sketchy but what the heck. Hope you have a great tour! Did I mention that I have beer in the fridge?

Just wanted to let y'all know I made it, and had a great time, thanks to your advice. Odie, I am sorry that I didn't drop by -- I didn't intend to snub you, just got really ready to get home. I hope we can cross paths some time soon and share that beer, and maybe a ride.

Congratulations!! Tell us which route you finally took and...

Pictures, Pictures, PICTURES!! :)

I went through Phoenix. I am definitely going the other way next time, though. I don't think the climbing will be too bad as long as I have the time to take it slow.

Here's a link to my photos. I'm afraid photography's not really my thing -- tend to get caught up in stuff and so my photos are usually the least interesting parts of the trip.

ETA: You were very right about the canal. It was a very pleasant route; I was quite impressed.

Yes, the Phoenix metro area has created a really nice bike-friendly canal system connected by bike paths/lanes right though the middle of this car buzzling city. Nice to see they continue making improvements. Looks like you had a blast and I'm glad you made it home safe.