Save the Scenic Santa Ritas

Fighting to protect the Santa Rita and Patagonia Mountains from the devastating impacts of mining.

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Copper World – Directions

1. Start at Sahuarita and Santa Rita Roads intersection, which is just east of the Pecan Festival Grounds in Sahuarita, about 3 miles east of I-19. Turn south onto Santa Rita Road (start, 0.0 miles)

2. Pass Sahuarita Highlands subdivision (3.0 miles from start)

3. Enter on to the improved-dirt road (4.0 miles). This is Santa Rita Road/Road 505.

4.  Pass the first Tucson Electric Power Toro Switchyard-to-Rosemont Switchyard project sign (7.3 miles)

5. Pass Huerfano (“Orphan”) Butte, (10 miles). Huerfano Butte is on the south side of the road.

6. Pass the fork for Road 486 (11.3 miles). Bear straight. (Road 486 goes south to Box Canyon, exiting near Madera Canyon.) 

7. Pass the fork for Road 485 (11.5 miles). Bear left. (Road 485 also goes south to Box Canyon.)

8. Arrive at Helvetia cemetery (11.8 miles). Caution: Park carefully at the roadside, pulling off the road, as this is a busy corridor with haul trucks.

9. Pass two baseyards on either side of Road 505 (12.5 miles). The former Helvetia Ranch, which serves as the east side baseyard, has assaying tents set up outside. The west side baseyard has a temporary, air-conditioned office unit.

10. Arrive at Peach Knob junction (12.8 miles). 

11. If you turn left at the junction, you are on Road 170 and arrive at the Imerys gate (15.4 miles). This road is horseshoe-shaped and stays within the “F” private parcel of Hudbay holdings. Tailings and waste rock are likely to be stored in this vicinity. The road passes over a principal west-running tributary wash. NOTE: Imerys is a grandfathered limestone quarry project, responsible for the white gash seen from the north and west sides of the Santa Ritas, and is frequently mistaken as the Copper World mining area. Imerys uses this road for off-site limestone hauling. 

12. If you go right at Peach Knob junction, you come to a second, quick fork. Bear left, and you will arrive at a private Hudbay gate, with shipping containers and water tank, at the base of Peach Knob (13.1 miles).This area is also within the “F parcel.” (See map, below.)

13. If you go right at Peach Knob junction, you come to a second, quick fork. Bear right and, and you arrive at another Tucson Electric Power Toro Switchyard-to-Rosemont Switchyard sign overlooking a principal tributary wash (13.2 miles). This is Road 4059 and is the site of current active earthworks involving haul trucks and bulldozer earthen pad construction. 

Arrive at Hudbay private property gate boundary (13.3 miles). This road, Road 4059, will support the utility corridor and is Hudbay’s access to Gunsight/Lopez Passes and, thus, the Rosemont Valley on the east side. This area is outside of the “F parcel,” substantially, and provides access to Hudbay’s other private parcels and patented mining claims.

If you wish to go, you should have, at minimum, a map, water, and a well-serviced car and tires. Be on the lookout for cars and trucks traveling in both directions, and have an emergency travel plan.

Map of the Copper World area, which highlights the “F parcel,” which is Hudbay’s private land on which it says it intends to contain all Copper World tailings and waste rock:

Santa Rita Road approaching from left, Helvetia Road approaching from right.
Santa Rita Road approaching, from left, into the Helvetia area. Cemetery is at the base of the hill, left side, after making a left turn.

Recent Posts

  • Ce:wi Duag – Ancestral Land: A Tohono O’odham Acknowledgment Run (video produced by Leslie Epperson) July 5, 2022
  • Rosemont Mine Rollercoaster: Trump-era rules were overturned, so Hudbay radically overhauled its mining plan (David Abbott, Arizona Mirror) July 2, 2022
  • Havasupai Tribe: Pinyon Plain uranium mine threatens our existence (AZ Mirror, Shondiin Silversmith) June 29, 2022
  • Copper world mine (Elaine Wolter, The Arizona Daily Star, Letter to the Editor) June 27, 2022
  • A California Gold Mine’s Toxic Legacy: Inside the Fight Over Reopening a Treasure Trove (Hailey Branson-Potts, Los Angeles Times) June 24, 2022

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Rosemont News

Ce:wi Duag – Ancestral Land: A Tohono O’odham Acknowledgment Run (video produced by Leslie Epperson)

Rosemont Mine Rollercoaster: Trump-era rules were overturned, so Hudbay radically overhauled its mining plan (David Abbott, Arizona Mirror)

Havasupai Tribe: Pinyon Plain uranium mine threatens our existence (AZ Mirror, Shondiin Silversmith)

Copper world mine (Elaine Wolter, The Arizona Daily Star, Letter to the Editor)

More Posts from this Category

Selected Lens on the Land Photographs

Land
Members of the Tohono O'odham Legislative Council, by Jeanne S. Broome
Night Sky
Water Resources
People
Economy
Biodiversity
Hiking at the Rosemont Site, by Dennis Caldwell
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Litigation Update

There have been two recent judicial rulings on the Rosemont Copper Company projects — one favorable and one unfavorable.

Click here to learn more

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