Called “desert sky islands,” the Santa Catalinas are one of Arizona’s mountain ranges with drastically different natural environments from peak to base. Anyone who’s experienced the cool breeze rolling down from Mt. Lemmon on a summer evening knows this firsthand. As a resident of The Canyons, you are placed in a prime position to sample the lifestyle and a variety of local sights each day of the year.

Close to home, the area sees more days of sunshine during the calendar year than anyplace else nationwide. This makes the Finger Rock Trail ideal for hiking during the milder fall and spring months, boasting gorgeous views of Tucson, Biosphere II and the Finger Rock natural formation. Some of its more spectacular scenes come from the Pima Saddle depression and the Pusch Ridge Wilderness Area, which is home to the area’s bighorn sheep population.

With the melting snow in the spring or the summer’s monsoon thunderstorms, the Santa Catalina Streams will occasionally run. But the Pima Canyon Dam receives the most attention by far. Built by the Arizona Game and Fish Department, the dam is always host to thirsty wildlife.

Enjoying a forest environment is also a convenient pleasure with the Santa Catalinas in your backyard. To the southwest, Baboquivari Peak is a sacred mountain of the Tohono O’odham people and home to the world-renowned Kitt Peak Observatory. The winter views of both this snow-capped peak and the larger Mt. Lemmon are a constant inspiration. Near or far, Mt. Lemmon is rarely short of beautiful winterscapes with its Ski Valley winter retreat.