Kennedy Meadows Trailhead is on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Mountains (California) approximately 9 miles west of Sonora pass. From here you can ride into the Emigrant Wilderness, Carson Iceberg Wilderness or northern Yosemite National Park.
Getting Here
Kennedy Meadows is near the PCT on State Route 108 (Sonora Pass Road). The road is a designated scenic route that winds across the Sierras against a backdrop of rocky cliffs, giant boulders, and vast forests of pine and aspen.
Sonora Pass (9,628 feet) is the second-highest highway pass in the Sierra Nevada. The PCT crosses the highway here.
Considerations When Hauling Horses
The approach to Kennedy Meadows from the east (Highway 395/Bridgeport) includes extremely steep (up to 26% grades at times) between Leavitt Meadows and Kennedy Meadows. These steep grades include narrow hairpin turns. Consider approaching from the west side through Sonora. Those coming from 395 can take Hwy 88 down to Sonora and then double back to camp via Sonora Pass Road.
Horse Camping & Amenities
There are multiple camp spots plus four corrals allocated for wilderness hikers and equestrians at the Kennedy Meadows Trailhead. Campsites and corrals are first come first serve. If you manage to snag one, you will need to see the Deadman Campground host and pay $15 per night.
***No Day Use and 2 night camping limit posted at the trailhead (See Video below)***
Miscellaneous Notes
The USFS website entry for this trailhead is https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/stanislaus/recarea/?recid=81673
The trailhead is located adjacent to Kennedy Meadows Resort and Pack Station. It’s a busy place with cabins, campgrounds, pack station, store, saloon and restaurant.
***PLEASE NOTE*** One of the fun things about the Sierra is that multiple locations have the same name. The Kennedy Meadows in this blog should not be confused with the more southern Kennedy Meadows near the PCT in Inyo National Forest. The “other” Kennedy Meadows is accessed from Hwy 395/Pearsonville.
Elevation is relatively low. In July it was 103 degrees at 7pm. Plan accordingly.
GPS coordinates Latitude: 38.316993 Longitude : -119.747269
Nice. Information and photos very helpful. Liked the addition of the video.
Really good information. Particularly about the road conditions. The only thing I found my self asking was if any of the sites would be big enough to fit my rig. Thanks for all the hard work you have done!
Nice info. I haven’t been there in over 20 years & looks like site has had many upgrades. Question: Are BMX & moter-cross riders still permitted to ride on same trails as horses? I found that terrifying even though my horse ignored them roaring past. They really tore up the trails too & created a lot of dust & noise. No regard for horse riders at all…
I too wonder if my rig 35’ trailer would fit. And driving up may be difficult for our rig with hairpin turns. We had a lot of difficulty getting into Joseph P. Grant in San Jose, CA. Thanks for the info and for all you do 🙂
Definitely do not approach from the east (Hwy 395). Approach from the west (Hwy 99) through Sonora. See images of comments received for that approach above.
What if you traveled a couple of hundred miles and all the campsites and corrals are taken?
Also, is it always just 2 nights.
That’s always the nail biter with first come first serve locations.
Great information! Would love to know if a large living quarters trailer could make it up the road into the campsite and if it would fit in the campsite. Icing on the cake would be a video of the road in.!
I guess it depends on the definition of “large”. I’ve seen some pretty big rigs crammed into places I never believed they would fit. Here are some social media comments regarding the drive from Sonora. Personally, I would do it from that side. If you look at the drive through video on the post you can see some decent sized trailers parked in the lot.