A journey of more than 50 miles is about to begin in the mountains north of Tucson, where work is getting underway on the first major project outlined in the Santa Catalina Trail Plan approved last year.
Workers will spend the next two months constructing a new two-mile connector between the popular Finger Rock Trail and the Pontatoc Trail.
In an announcement Thursday, the U.S. Forest Service said the work is slated for completion by the end of the year and will result in a 6.5-mile loop along the front range of the Catalinas that should help spread out visitors and reduce congestion in the area.
Both the Finger Rock and Pontatoc trails are accessed from the Finger Rock Trailhead at the north end of Alvernon Way.
John Goraj, Southern Arizona program coordinator for the National Forest Foundation, called the connector trail “an important and worthwhile project that will give long-time trail users, as well as new users, a challenging but rewarding experience in the Santa Catalina Mountains.”
The project is the first of about 54 miles of new hiking paths envisioned for the mountain range as part of the comprehensive, five-year trail improvement plan developed by the Forest Service and its partners. A total of 23 trail development projects and 13 trailhead and access improvements are outlined in the document.
A hiker walks along Finger Rock Trail, overlooking Tucson in the Santa Catalina Mountains, in an undated photo. Work is starting on a new two-mile connector to link the trail to the Pontatoc Trail, creating a 6.5-mile loop.
The plan was finalized in June 2023, after a two-year public process launched in the wake of the 2020 Bighorn Fire that scorched almost 120,000 acres and damaged roughly 70% of the Catalinas’ trail network.
The work proposed through 2030 is aimed at accommodating the rising number of hikers in winter, growing interest in climbing and mountain biking, and demand for easier trails better suited for horseback riding and novice hikers and cyclists.
The new trails will be constructed through a long-term collaboration between the Coronado National Forest, the National Forest Foundation and the trail community.
“We are excited to get started on implementing the Santa Catalina Trail Plan, which many organizations and hundreds of people helped shape,” said Coronado National Forest Supervisor Kerwin Dewberry in a written statement.
Before construction could begin on the new connector trail, the project underwent a National Environmental Policy Act review to gauge any impacts on cultural resources and wildlife in the Catalinas, including the range’s reintroduced herd of bighorn sheep.
Only hand tools will be used to build the trail, with construction scheduled to avoid the sheep’s breeding season.
The project will be overseen by Tucson-based Outslope Trail Solutions under contract with the National Forest Foundation. The work is being paid for by the Heritage Fund, a grant source administered by Arizona State Parks and Trails.
Forest Service officials said visitors could see increased activity at the Finger Rock Trailhead over the next two months as the project unfolds.
