Sherman Pass / Monache Meadows
Sequoia National Forest (above the Kern River) · near Kernville / Lake Isabella · Sierra Nevada / Yosemite
Off-Road
At a glance
- Skill level
- advanced
- Size
- High-Sierra 4x4 routes to Monache Meadows, the largest meadow in the Sierra
- Best season
- July–October · Snow-gated in winter and spring (high elevation)
Permits and booking
- Permit
- Sequoia National Forest — no permit for the routes, but a campfire permit is required for backcountry camping. High-clearance 4x4 required. Remote; carry everything. Snow-gated much of the year; confirm seasonal access.
What is here
- Terrain
- mountain-4x4 · overland · forest-roads
Worth knowing
- Good for a first timer
- No
Off-Road detail
- Nickname
- The Southern Sierra High Route
- Vehicles
- 4x4-jeep · overland
- Signature routes
- The Monache Meadows route · Sherman Pass corridor
- Intl tip
- Sherman Pass is above the Kern River Valley — the same region as the Kern's whitewater (rivers guide), the Needles climbing (climbing guide), and Cannell Plunge MTB (MTB guide). Kernville is the base town. The high season is short (summer–early fall); confirm road status with Sequoia NF before the long drive in.
The guide
The Sherman Pass and Monache Meadows routes open up the wild high country of the Southern Sierra to the prepared 4x4 traveler —…
In the Guidebook
Everything above is yours for free. The written guide to Sherman Pass / Monache Meadows — what it is actually like, and what we would tell a friend before they went — comes with the Guidebook.
Getting there
- Coordinates
- 36.178, -118.306