Dirty Freehub posted details of this route last year and it looked intriguing so we checked it out. This is definitely one that is best ridden on mountain bikes because the gravel road is very washboarded in long sections. So much so that it would seem tortuous to ride on a skinny tire. This is an out and back and clocked in at 28.7 miles with 3367′ of climbing.
We started our ride by Peña Blanca Lake about 18 miles west of Nogales, AZ. Peña Blanca Lake is a reservoir created in 1957. The lake itself is beautiful but I read about some mercury level problems from all the historical mining in the area. Yikes! We took some pictures but didn’t go in.
The gravel road climbs almost immediately and there are expansive views looking out over miles and miles of rolling hills. Giant rock walls tower above as you climb and then past Atascosa Peak and Sycamore Canyon. A couple border patrol trucks passed us (we weren’t far from Mexico). Other than that, there was a motorcycle rider and a tarantula.
Ruby, AZ is a ghost town now but in the early 1900’s was a mining camp named Montana Camp because it sits at the base of Montana Peak. At it’s peak there were around 1,200 people living there and when they left, the mining company left behind equipment and buildings that supported the operation of Montana Mine, which closed in 1940. The miners and their families left behind their three-room school, the playground, and the mercantile. It’s entirely privately owned and there is a $15 fee to enter, which we didn’t.
As per usual, we split a bar, admired the views of Ruby, and turned around and rode back. The ride isn’t all climbing on the way out and descending on the way back. In fact, the way back only has 600′ or so less of climbing then on the way out so make sure you leave plenty of energy to get back!
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