Uploaded July 2026 | Updated September 2026, 1 week ago
The Palms to Pines Highway is one of Southern California's most incredible scenic drives, but there's much more to this road than beautiful views.
In this video, we travel the eastern half of California State Route 74, beginning in Lake Elsinore, climbing through the San Jacinto Mountains, and descending the famous Seven Level Hill into Palm Desert.
Along the way, we'll uncover the hidden history behind this remarkable highway, including the wagon roads that eventually became Highway 74, the Hemet Depot, Lake Hemet, Garner Valley's surprising Hollywood history, Ancient Lake Cahuilla, the engineering challenges of building one of California's most spectacular mountain highways, the filming location of the opening scene of It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, and more.
The Palms to Pines Highway offers one of the most dramatic changes in scenery anywhere in California.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
03:37 Motte Historical Museum
07:18 Hemet Santa Fe Depot
11:41 Mountain Center
13:26 Lake Hemet
16:06 Keneworthy Historic Site
19:19 Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument
20:56 Sugarloaf Cafe
22:18 Cahuilla Tewanet Vista Point
27:26 Coachella Valley Vista Point
30:30 Smiler's Point
The Ortega Highway: youtu.be/cn_08C7h_ho
○ Gear we use: amazon.com/shop/sidetrackadventures
►Join us on Patreon: patreon.com/SidetrackAdventures
►Please subscribe for weekly updates showcasing some of our adventures: youtube.com/channel/UCdueDRFYPVgzPAAOM_bxVWA?sub_confirmation=1
►Also please follow Sidetrack Adventures on Instagram: instagram.com/sidetrackadventures
►Music in this video is from Epidemic Sounds; use our link for a free trial: share.epidemicsound.com/v927fj
The Palms to Pines Highway is one of Southern California's most incredible scenic drives, but there's much more to this road than beautiful views.
In this video, we travel the eastern half of California State Route 74, beginning in Lake Elsinore, climbing through the San Jacinto Mountains, and descending the famous Seven Level Hill into Palm Desert.
Along the way, we'll uncover the hidden history behind this remarkable highway, including the wagon roads that eventually became Highway 74, the Hemet Depot, Lake Hemet, Garner Valley's surprising Hollywood history, Ancient Lake Cahuilla, the engineering challenges of building one of California's most spectacular mountain highways, the filming location of the opening scene of It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, and more.
The Palms to Pines Highway offers one of the most dramatic changes in scenery anywhere in California.
Chapters:
00:00 Intro
03:37 Motte Historical Museum
07:18 Hemet Santa Fe Depot
11:41 Mountain Center
13:26 Lake Hemet
16:06 Keneworthy Historic Site
19:19 Santa Rosa & San Jacinto Mountains National Monument
20:56 Sugarloaf Cafe
22:18 Cahuilla Tewanet Vista Point
27:26 Coachella Valley Vista Point
30:30 Smiler's Point
The Ortega Highway: youtu.be/cn_08C7h_ho
○ Gear we use: amazon.com/shop/sidetrackadventures
►Join us on Patreon: patreon.com/SidetrackAdventures
►Please subscribe for weekly updates showcasing some of our adventures: youtube.com/channel/UCdueDRFYPVgzPAAOM_bxVWA?sub_confirmation=1
►Also please follow Sidetrack Adventures on Instagram: instagram.com/sidetrackadventures
►Music in this video is from Epidemic Sounds; use our link for a free trial: share.epidemicsound.com/v927fj
