IF YOU GO   ● Drive: From Tucson, follow Arizona 77 north to Globe. It's about 100 miles. As you enter Globe, you'll leave Arizona 77 and be on U.S. 60. Drive into town on U.S. 60 and watch for a sign to the Pinal Mountain Recreation Area. Turn left and follow signs toward the recreation area. The route follows Forest Road 112, Forest Road 55 and Forest Road 651 to the top of the mountain range. It's about 17 miles from Globe. You can make the drive in a passenger car except in periods of snowy or stormy weather.   ⛪✆✃✙✖✗✙✛ ✷❈❅■✚ Weather conditions are generally favorable any time from now through early autumn for hiking, biking, picnicking and camping.   ● Cost: Free   ● Et cetera: Be sure your vehicle is in good condition and sufficiently fueled before driving into the mountains. Bring along plenty of water because none is available in campgrounds.   ● Information: To reach the U.S. Forest Service in Globe, call 1-928-402-6200.

SIX-SHOOTER CANYON - A hiking trail snakes through an evergreen forest dotted with mountain wildflowers. Campgrounds nestle in the shade of tall ponderosa pines and aspens. Summer temperatures top out in the 80s, instead of the 100s. We might be describing the cool heights of the heavily visited Catalina Mountains north of Tucson. In fact, this little-known high-country refuge is in the Pinal Mountains - a pine-topped range poking nearly 8,000 feet into the sky south of Globe. For those willing to drive a bit more than 100 miles and navigate an unpaved mountain road, Six-Shooter Canyon and the surrounding Pinal Mountain peaks offer an escape not only from desert heat - but also from the Catalina crowds. "I've camped up there, ridden horses up there, hunted up there and hiked the foot trails," says Bob Bracamonte, a Globe resident who has explored the Pinal range since his childhood. "It's a good place to roam," Bracamonte says. "You'll see lots of ponderosa pines, junipers, scrub oak and mountain mahogany. You've got a few stands of aspen on the northern slopes, and there are numerous springs running up there." Bracamonte, a one-time hunting guide, says the mountains also are known for their plentiful wildlife - including white-tailed deer, black bears and mountain lions - and rich human history. "There was an old sawmill up there and some small mine operations," he says. "My grandfather was a bootlegger and used to have a still up there. . . . You still come across signs of those things." Six-Shooter Canyon, which some say was named for pistol-packing workers at a sawmill there, might not match the grandeur of the Catalina and Santa Rita mountains near Tucson. Both of those ranges top out at more than 9,000 feet and offer a more varied mix of terrain than the Pinals. But with paved roads, parking fees, busy trails and jam-packed campgrounds, they also seem a little too civilized for visitors who like their mountains with some rough edges. By contrast, you'll drive an unpaved and sometimes bumpy road into the Pinals - and pay no pesky fees for the pleasure. You might take a hike on the 6-mile Six-Shooter Trail and see deer, squirrels and several species of birds - but not another human being. Three campgrounds along the main route into the range - Forest Road 651 - rarely are full, says Sheryl Yerkovich, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Forest Service in Globe. Yerkovich says the upper two campgrounds, at an elevation of about 7,500 feet, have a total of 16 campsites. Camping is free. The campgrounds have restrooms, but no drinking water is available. "It's very nice up there in the summer," Yerkovich says. "You'll have highs in the lower 80s and lows in the 60s or 50s on a summer night. "It's a pretty range," she says. "I enjoy hiking up there. You see wildlife like white-tailed deer, and quite a few people do bird-watching up there, too." Side roads branch off from Forest Road 651 and offer a variety of driving tours. But while 651 is suitable for passenger cars in late spring, summer and early fall, a four-wheel-drive vehicle is necessary for travel on some of the side roads, Yerkovich says. The summits of 7,848-Pinal Peak and 7,812-foot Signal Peak, like some of the high points in the Catalinas, are bristling with signal towers. But if you look beyond the towers, the view from the top takes in hundreds of square miles of mountains, canyons and deserts. For many, the prime attraction of the Pinals will be a slice of solitude no longer available at busy sites around Tucson. Amble along the Kellner Canyon Trail or Ice House Canyon Trail - both marked along the main road - and you'll often hear little more than the sound of your own footsteps and perhaps wind wafting through the pines. Take the signed side road to Ferndell Spring and you'll reach the upper trailhead for the Six-Shooter Trail. The route descends about 3,000 vertical feet in its 6-mile course and is popular with mountain bikers. Elsewhere in the range, you might find a trickling stream or a secluded glade that could serve as a set for "A Midsummer Night's Dream." If you like the range in spring or summer, consider a return in autumn when aspens and other trees put on a color show. Some locals say that's the most beautiful season in the Pinals. "We still like to go up there in the fall and look at the leaves," Bracamonte says.