This Sunday, November 15, the Main Street "Y" in Old Town closes from noon to 9 p.m. for Pechanga Pu'éska Mountain Day. On Monday morning the same stretch of street closes again so crews can install the Old Town Christmas Tree and holiday photo spots at the bottom of the "Y." Valley News reported both closures after the City Council accepted them in August.

Those two closures are back to back on the city calendar. Before Old Town turns to trees, ice rinks and Santa, it marks a holiday the city created in 2012. The holiday honors the people who were here first and a mountain that a long campaign by the Pechanga Band of Indians and its allies kept from becoming a gravel pit. In Temecula, the day before the decorating starts belongs to the valley itself.

Sunday at the Civic Center

The city's event is set for Sunday, November 15, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m., at the Civic Center, 41000 Main St., and it's free. The City of Temecula's calendar listing describes the day as a city holiday "to commemorate the native culture and heritage of the Pechanga Band of Indians, and the profound ways in which the Pechanga Tribe, Temecula's first peoples, has shaped the community's character and heritage." The city puts it on each year in partnership with the tribe.

Last year gives a sense of the format. The city's 2025 announcement listed a proclamation recital, appetizers and dessert, and books from Great Oak Press with the authors of The Temecula Massacre signing copies. People were asked to bring blankets for a double feature of The Temecula Massacre and the documentary The Mountain That Weeps. The city also asked people to arrive early because seating was limited. Earlier years were similar. In 2023 the Press-Enterprise described a 4:30 p.m. City Hall observance with the proclamation, a documentary screening and refreshments.

For 2026, the city's listing confirms the time, place and free admission. Check the city calendar page before you head over.

The Mountain the Day Is Named For

The Pechanga Band's own history of Pu'éska Mountain calls Wexéwxi Pu'éska "one of the most sacred places in the Luiseño religion," the site of many significant events during the Creation of the World. The name translates to "where the rocks cry." In the tribe's account, the rocks wept there after Wuyóot, the first leader of the Káamalam, died. The tribe writes that the mountain shows the form of Tamáayawut, lying down to await the birth of the Káamalam, and that knowledge of the mountain's important places has been "passed from elder to child for generations." The tribe's Creation account adds that Wuyóot was cremated on Pu'éska and that the first oak grew from his ashes.

If you drive I-15 south of town regularly, you've likely passed it. The Press-Enterprise placed Pu'éska at the peak of the ridge rising from the freeway's western edge. A 2015 Press-Enterprise report said most of the land the tribe bought there is in unincorporated Riverside County, with a small sliver in San Diego County. The mountain is tribal land.

How a Quarry Fight Became a City Holiday

The holiday exists because of a land-use fight that went on for most of a decade:

1. 2007. Granite Construction met with Pechanga leaders about Liberty Quarry, a pit mine proposed for Pu'éska that, according to the tribe, would have destroyed the mountain.
2. 2008 to 2012. The tribe worked with the City of Temecula, Save Our Southwest Hills and other valley organizations to oppose the quarry. The tribe says Riverside County denied the application twice before agreeing to fast-track it in 2012. The Press-Enterprise described a proposal to extract up to 270 million tons.
3. November 15, 2012. The Pechanga Band agreed to buy the site. The Press-Enterprise reported that Granite would sell 354 acres for $3 million and receive another $17.35 million under a separate settlement. Under the same deal, Granite would not own or operate a quarry in specified nearby areas through 2035.
4. December 11, 2012. Mayor Chuck Washington signed the city proclamation declaring November 15, 2012, and every November 15 after it, "Pechanga Pu'éska Mountain Day."
5. 2014. Pechanga worked to have the Luiseño Ancestral Origin Landscape, a 5,372-acre area that includes Pu'éska, added to the National Register of Historic Places, according to the Press-Enterprise. California's State Historical Resources Commission unanimously found that the landscape met National Register criteria at the local level.
6. 2015. The tribe says the federal government placed the land into trust that year.

The date on the proclamation is the date of the purchase, so every November 15 is an anniversary of the day the quarry fight ended. The tribe also points to a benefit for the whole valley: the purchase saved the mountain and "prevented the air pollution the quarry would have caused."

Pechanga Tribal Chairman Mark Macarro made the same point in the city's 2025 announcement:

"Pu'éska is a natural monument that reflects Temecula's tribal history and heritage. Thanks to the efforts of many, future generations of Temecula Valley residents will continue to enjoy our valley's beautiful landscape and fresh air."

In the same announcement, Mayor Kalfus, a lifelong Temecula resident, said he hoped the holiday would honor the tribe "by fostering educational awareness about the significance of the cultural heritage of the Pechanga People."

Monday, Old Town Starts Decorating

When Sunday's event ends, the holiday season moves in on the same block. The Old Town Christmas Tree goes up at the bottom of the Main Street "Y" on November 16 and 17, with the "Y" closed from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days and Mercedes Street left open. Here's the rest of the season's opening stretch:

The ice rink is the first wine-country stop of the season, opening four days after the mountain observance. Peltzer's listing describes 8,400 square feet of real ice and complimentary skating gliders for beginners. Admission is $20 for ages 11 and up and $14 for ages 10 and under, skate rental is $2, and a season pass is $160.

In Old Town, Santa's visiting hours at Penny Pickles Workshop run on weekends from November 28 through December 20: Saturdays 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and Sundays 1 to 4 p.m. Tickets for Holiday Taste went on sale November 3 through the Old Town Temecula Association. It's a self-guided walk with tasting stations inside participating restaurants, tasting rooms and breweries. The city's light parade starts at Jefferson Avenue and Del Rio Road and heads south into Old Town.

Before Sunday, Watch the Film

The documentary shown at past observances tells the whole Liberty Quarry story. According to the city, Brad Munoa, a member of the Pechanga Band of Indians and a writer, director and producer for Pechanga Creative Studios, made The Mountain That Weeps in 2019. It follows what the city calls a "7+ year monumental people's movement" against a mine that "would have been among the largest gravel pits in the United States." The film's official site, mountainthatweeps.com, hosts the full film and a shorter 44-minute version. Watching it before Sunday is a good way to learn the backstory before you take a blanket to the Civic Center.

Old Town has free public parking in designated lots, and the Old Town Temecula Association's parking map shows where they are. On Sunday, plan to park a short walk from the Civic Center, since the "Y" and Mercedes Street between Third and Fourth will be closed from noon.

At McAllister Homes Real Estate, we follow the local calendar across North County and the Temecula Valley closely, because it's part of being a good neighbor. If you have a question about your street, your home or what's changing around Old Town this season, let's connect.