About this permit
Mount San Jacinto State Wilderness runs a real permit quota, and the park explains the mechanism plainly: there is no dispersed camping in the State Wilderness, all campers must have a Wilderness Camping Permit and camp in a designated wilderness campground, and only enough permits are sold to occupy the available sites. Four primitive wilderness campgrounds exist, all open year-round: Round Valley with 19 sites, Tamarack Valley with 8, Little Round Valley with 6, and Strawberry Junction with 3. Every one has vault toilets and a maximum occupancy of 15 per site.
Permits are $5.00 per person and subject to availability. They may be acquired up to 8 weeks before your desired camping date, and one person may fill out the permit for a hiking group of up to 15 provided everyone hikes together at all times. There are three routes: in person at Park Headquarters at the Idyllwild Campground, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily; at the Long Valley Ranger Station at the top of the tramway, cash or check only and same-day permits only; or by mail with a completed application, a check or money order, and a self-addressed stamped envelope. The park does not process applications without the envelope.
Demand is real and the agency publishes it: on summer weekends these campgrounds fill to capacity four or more weeks in advance. It is essential that campers plan ahead to avoid being turned away on those weekends. Fees are non-refundable in the event of cancellation.
The route
There are two ways in. From the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway, the only entrance into the park from the Mountain Station is down a steep paved walkway that descends 100 feet in an eighth of a mile, whose handrails do not run its full length. From Long Valley at 8,400 feet, Round Valley Meadow is 4.2 miles round trip with 700 feet of gain, and the Round Valley Loop is 4.0 miles with 600 feet. From Idyllwild, the Devil's Slide Trail reaches Wellman Divide in 10.6 miles round trip with 3,300 feet of gain.
The four campgrounds are all open year-round: Round Valley with 19 primitive sites and a water spigot that must be filtered or purified and may run dry, Tamarack Valley with 8, Little Round Valley with 6, and Strawberry Junction with 3. All have vault toilets and a maximum occupancy of 15 per site.
San Jacinto Peak stands at 10,834 feet, the highest peak in the California State Park System. It is 11.6 miles round trip and 2,400 feet of gain from Long Valley, or 16 miles and 4,500 feet from Devil's Slide.
Why it matters
Most California state park camping is a race for inventory. This is a carrying-capacity system, and the park says so outright: each backcountry campground has a limited number of sites and only enough permits are sold to occupy those sites. Thirty-six sites across four camps is the whole ceiling, and on summer weekends these campgrounds fill to capacity four or more weeks in advance.
