Riverside County topographic maps

One possible origin of palm in the place name comes from early Spanish explorers who referred to the area as La Palma de la Mano de Dios or "The Palm of God's hand". The earliest use of the name "Palm Springs" is from United States Topographical Engineers who used the term in 1853 maps. According to William…

Average elevation: 859 m

San Jacinto Peak is one of the most topographically prominent peaks in the United States, and is ranked the sixth most prominent peak in the 48 contiguous states. According to John W. Robinson and Bruce D. Risher, authors of The San Jacintos, "No Southern California hiker worth his salt would miss climbing…

Average elevation: 2,880 m

Average elevation: 476 m

Average elevation: 582 m

Average elevation: 461 m

Average elevation: 599 m

The San Jacinto Mountains, like the neighboring San Bernardino Mountains, are a humid island above the surrounding desert and semi-desert. Annual precipitation ranges from about 15 inches at the western base (and only 6 inches on the eastern, desert base) to as much as 32 inches above 5,500 feet (the mountain…

Average elevation: 2,687 m

Average elevation: 264 m

Average elevation: 647 m

Mesa Verde (Spanish for 'Green Table') is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California. Mesa Verde sits at an elevation of 390 feet (120 m). The 2020 United States census reported Mesa Verde's population was 766.

Average elevation: 120 m

Aguanga (/əˈwɑːŋ.ɡə/; Luiseño: Awáanga, meaning "dog place") is a census-designated place located within the Inland Empire in Riverside County, California. It is located about 18 miles (29 km) east of Temecula and 22 miles (35 km) south-southeast of Hemet. Aguanga lies at an elevation of 1955 feet…

Average elevation: 657 m

Average elevation: 340 m

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.6 square miles (92 km2), of which 35.1 square miles (91 km2) is land and 0.4 square miles (1.0 km2) (1.22%) is water. The city's elevation is 56 feet (20 m) above sea level.

Average elevation: 201 m

Aguanga (/əˈwɑːŋ.ɡə/; Luiseño: Awáanga, meaning "dog place") is a census-designated place located within the Inland Empire in Riverside County, California. It is located about 18 miles (29 km) east of Temecula and 22 miles (35 km) south-southeast of Hemet. Aguanga lies at an elevation of 1955 feet…

Average elevation: 725 m

Average elevation: 460 m

Average elevation: 427 m

Average elevation: 437 m

Average elevation: 467 m

Average elevation: 703 m

It lies centered on the junction of State Route 74 and State Route 243 in the southern division of San Bernardino National Forest. Mountain Center lies just north of Lake Hemet, midway between Hemet and Palm Desert, just south of the town of Idyllwild, and it is southeast of the city of Riverside, the county…

Average elevation: 1,475 m

Average elevation: 664 m

Average elevation: 468 m

Average elevation: 364 m

Average elevation: 451 m

"Mile-high Idyllwild" is a mountain resort about one-mile (1,600 m) in altitude. Idyllwild is flanked by two large rock formations, Tahquitz Peak and Suicide Rock, which are famous in Southern California rock-climbing circles. It offers no skiing, so "the Hill" has been minimally developed over the years and…

Average elevation: 1,712 m

Average elevation: 271 m

With an elevation of 2,980 feet above sea level, Cherry Valley is at the highest point on the San Gorgonio Pass between San Bernardino and Palm Springs. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 8.1 square miles (21 km2), all of it land.

Average elevation: 933 m

Average elevation: 1,390 m

Whitewater (formerly White Water) is a census-designated place in Riverside County, California. It is directly off Interstate 10 halfway between North Palm Springs and Cabazon on the way from Palm Springs to Los Angeles. It is known as the site of the San Gorgonio Pass Wind Farm. The ZIP Code is 92282, and the…

Average elevation: 451 m

Average elevation: 463 m

Anza is a census-designated place located in southwestern Riverside County, California, in the Anza Valley, a semi-arid region at a mean elevation of 3,921 feet (1,195 m) above sea level. It is located 13 miles (21 km) south of Idyllwild, 32 miles (51 km) east-northeast of Temecula, 40 miles (64 km) southwest…

Average elevation: 1,309 m

Average elevation: 1,304 m

Average elevation: 944 m

Thermal is an unincorporated community within the Coachella Valley in Riverside County, California, United States, located approximately 25 miles (40 km) southeast of Palm Springs and about 9.5 miles (15.3 km) north of the Salton Sea. The community's elevation is 138 feet (42 m) below mean sea level. It is…

Average elevation: -35 m

Average elevation: 118 m

Average elevation: 395 m

The area is surrounded on the southwest by the Santa Rosa Mountains, by the San Jacinto Mountains to the west, the Little San Bernardino Mountains to the east and San Gorgonio Mountain to the north. These mountains peak at around 11,000 feet (3,400 m) and tend to average between 5,000 and 7,000 feet (1,500 and…

Average elevation: 72 m

Average elevation: 1,709 m

Average elevation: 336 m

Average elevation: 552 m

Average elevation: 553 m

Average elevation: -4 m

Average elevation: 1,425 m

With an elevation of 2,980 feet above sea level, Cherry Valley is at the highest point on the San Gorgonio Pass between San Bernardino and Palm Springs. According to the United States Census Bureau, the CDP has a total area of 8.1 square miles (21 km2), all of it land.

Average elevation: 942 m

Average elevation: 2,011 m

The elevation (at City Hall) is 224 feet (68 m) above sea level. Elevations vary from the lower northern half once covered in sand dunes to the upper slope southern cove (300–900 feet or 91–274 metres) all the way to the ridgeline at 1,000 feet (300 m). Palm Desert is in the Coachella Valley, the…

Average elevation: 303 m

Average elevation: 120 m

Lake Mathews was constructed in a basin formerly traversed by Cajalco Creek; thus, any water flowing down the creek enters the reservoir. Cajalco Creek is a tributary of the Santa Ana River via Cajalco Canyon Creek into Temescal Creek. The original course of the creek, before 1933, can be seen on the US Dept.…

Average elevation: 430 m

Average elevation: 123 m

Average elevation: 271 m

Average elevation: 1,327 m

It lies centered on the junction of State Route 74 and State Route 243 in the southern division of San Bernardino National Forest. Mountain Center lies just north of Lake Hemet, midway between Hemet and Palm Desert, just south of the town of Idyllwild, and it is southeast of the city of Riverside, the county…

Average elevation: 1,476 m

The city is centrally located in Southern California in the Menifee Valley. It is almost 15 miles (24 km) north of Temecula and just north of Murrieta. Menifee is roughly 46 square miles (100 km2) in size and has an elevation of 1,424 feet (434 m). The incorporated City of Menifee includes the communities of…

Average elevation: 474 m

Average elevation: 842 m

Average elevation: 1,831 m

Average elevation: 488 m

Average elevation: 170 m

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 3.7 square miles (9.6 km2), all of it land. The city ranges in elevation from 20 to 934 feet, with an average elevation of 69 feet (21 m).

Average elevation: 293 m

Average elevation: 468 m

The elevation is 68 feet (21 m) below sea level, as the eastern half of the Coachella Valley is below sea level. The saltwater lake, Salton Sea, 10 miles (16 km) south of Coachella, is 228 feet (69 m) below sea level.

Average elevation: 2 m

The entire eastern boundary of the Colorado River Basin runs along the North American Continental Divide and is defined largely by the Rocky Mountains and the Rio Grande Basin. The Wind River Range in Wyoming marks the northern extent of the basin, and is separated from the Colorado Rockies by the endorheic…

Average elevation: 102 m

Average elevation: 190 m

Average elevation: 592 m

The city is centrally located in Southern California in the Menifee Valley. It is almost 15 miles (24 km) north of Temecula and just north of Murrieta. Menifee is roughly 46 square miles (100 km2) in size and has an elevation of 1,424 feet (434 m). The incorporated City of Menifee includes the communities of…

Average elevation: 456 m

"Mile-high Idyllwild" is a mountain resort about one mile (1600 m) in altitude. Idyllwild is flanked by two large rock formations, Tahquitz Rock (also known as Lily Rock) and Suicide Rock, which are famous in Southern California rock-climbing circles.[citation needed] It offers no skiing, so "the Hill" has…

Average elevation: 1,746 m

Average elevation: 738 m

Average elevation: 1,791 m

Average elevation: 2,069 m

Average elevation: 175 m

Average elevation: 461 m

Average elevation: 488 m

Banning's elevation is approximately 2,300 feet (700 m) above sea level, which gives it a cooler climate in contrast to the county seat of Riverside at 800 feet (240 m) above sea level and the Coachella Valley of the Colorado Desert to the east.

Average elevation: 1,036 m

Situated within the foothills of the San Bernardino Mountains, the city's elevation ranges between 2,300 to 3,500 feet (700 to 1,070 m) above sea level.

Average elevation: 720 m

Average elevation: 1,211 m

La Quinta is located at 33°40′31″N 116°17′51″W / 33.67528°N 116.29750°W / 33.67528; -116.29750 (33.675373, −116.297391). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 35.6 square miles (92 km2), of which 35.1 square miles (91 km2) is land and 0.4 square miles…

Average elevation: 201 m

Average elevation: 527 m

The elevation is 68 feet (21 m) below sea level, as the eastern half of the Coachella Valley is below sea level. The saltwater lake, Salton Sea, 10 miles (16 km) south of Coachella, is 228 feet (69 m) below sea level.

Average elevation: -2 m

Average elevation: 484 m

Average elevation: 186 m

Average elevation: 649 m

Average elevation: 511 m

Average elevation: 214 m

Summer winds and the higher elevation keep Desert Hot Springs on average 5-7 degrees cooler than other communities in Coachella Valley. However, the winter season can be warmer due to the surrounding mountains blocking north winds. Since it lies at a higher elevation than the cities further south, cold air…

Average elevation: 387 m

Average elevation: 476 m

Average elevation: 267 m

With an elevation of 2,500-3,000 feet above sea level, Beaumont is at the peak on the San Gorgonio Pass between San Bernardino and Palm Springs, neighboring the Interstate 10 and State Route 60 freeways. If driving east to Banning or west to Calimesa, drivers can feel a gradual downward slope.

Average elevation: 728 m

Desert Center is a census designated place in the Colorado Desert in Riverside County, California. It is in southern California, between the cities of Indio and Blythe at the junction of Interstate 10 and State Route 177, about halfway between Phoenix and Los Angeles. The ZIP Code is 92239, and the community…

Average elevation: 232 m

Average elevation: 480 m

The rainfall until 1893 was greater than normal, and the lake remained high and overflowed naturally on three or four occasions during that time. The lake water was purchased by the Temescal Water Company for the irrigation of land in Corona. Its outlet channel was deepened, permitting gravity flow down the…

Average elevation: 531 m

Average elevation: 439 m

Average elevation: 537 m

Average elevation: 150 m

Average elevation: 224 m

Average elevation: 372 m

Average elevation: 1,210 m

Average elevation: 794 m

Average elevation: 336 m

Average elevation: 787 m

The city of Riverside, California has plans to annex Highgrove in the near future. Currently at Spring Mountain Ranch community, Avalon, Cambria, and Sonoma (all opening by February 2022) are the three, newest largest master-planned communities being built at the Highgrove eastside area. Soon, Compass and…

Average elevation: 316 m

Dedicated to James Simpson, Hemet City Council 1947–48, and mayor 1950 to 1966. Simpson Park is a wilderness park located in the Santa Rosa Hills southeast of Hemet with sheltered picnic area and tables, barbecues, restrooms, and hiking trails. At an elevation of 2,500 feet (760 m), it provides an expansive…

Average elevation: 535 m