The summit of San Jacinto Peak stands 10,834 feet above sea level and is the second highest mountain range in Southern California. No more than a two-hour drive from either Los Angeles or San Diego, the mountain's magnificent granite peaks, subalpine forests, and fern-bordered mountain meadows offer a unique opportunity to explore and enjoy a scenic, high-country wilderness area. The park offers two drive-in campgrounds near the town of Idyllwild. Most of the park is a designated wilderness area enjoyed by hikers and backpackers. 
 
Mount San Jacinto State Park & Wilderness is just one of many entities that call this mountainous region home.
 
Palm Springs Aerial Tramway
Starting in Chino Canyon near Palm Springs, the tram takes passengers from the Valley Station at 2,643 feet elevation to the Mountain Station on the edge of the wilderness, elevation 8,516 feet. The Mountain Station features a restaurant, gift shop, snack bar, and the state park visitor center. In Long Valley, a short walk from the station, you will find the Long Valley Ranger Station, a picnic area with barbecue stoves and restrooms, a ski center, a self-guiding nature trail, and Desert View Trail which offers panoramas of the high country including several peaks over 10,000 feet in elevation. You can also enter the hiking trail system from this point. 
 
Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument
A majority of Mount San Jacinto State Park and Wilderness is part of the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto Mountains National Monument. From Desert oases to granite peaks, the Santa Rosa and San Jacinto National Monument is a land of contrast with stories of adaptation. For more information about the San Bernardino National Forest, visit https://www.fs.usda.gov/sbnf. For more information about the Bureau of Land Management, visit https://www.blm.gov/office/palm-springs-south-coast-field-office.
 
Pacific Crest Trail
The Pacific Crest Trail is the jewel in the crown of America’s scenic trails, spanning 2,650 miles from Mexico to Canada through three western states. The trail passes through five California State Parks: Anza Borrego Desert, Mount San Jacinto, and Silverwood Lake in Southern California, and Castle Crags and McArthur-Burney Falls in Northern California.