Idyllwild and Pine Cove are two adjacent communities located in the San Jacinto Mountains in Riverside County , California , United States . "Mile-high Idyllwild" is a popular southern California mountain resort about one mile in altitude. Residents call the area "the hill." The population was 3,504 as of the 2000 census. Idyllwild is flanked by two large rocks, Tahquitz Rock (also called Lily Rock) and Suicide Rock, which are famous in Southern California rock climbing circles. One of Idyllwild's attractions is that it offers all four seasons, yet in snowy winter is only an hour's drive down to the warm desert on the scenic Palms to Pines Highway. Another advantage--to many--is that it offers no lake for speedboats, no downhill skiing, thus the hill has been minimally developed over the years and remains a center for hiking, mountain and rock climbing, horseback riding. Idyllwild also has a fine cultural scene, which includes a music and arts school formerly affiliated with the University of Southern Caa and a jazz festival in August. The Idyllwild area also includes the hamlets of Mountain Center and Garner Valley. (Neither community, Idyllwild or Pine Cove, is an incorporated municipality. In order to provide statistical information, the United States Census Bureau has defined Idyllwild-Pine Cove as a single census-designated place (CDP). The statistical information applies to the entire CDP, although local understanding of the area making up these communities may vary somewhat from the definition of the CDP.)