Shepherd Pass Trail

From US 395 in Independence, go west on Market Street about 4.3 miles, then south on Foothill Road 2.8 miles to Shepherd Pack Trailhead. Continue about half a mile beyond it and turn west onto the small dirt road; follow that rough track about 1.3 miles to Shepherd Pass Trailhead. The road may be very rough, and vehicles with stock trailers should park at the pack trailhead. There are food-storage lockers at the trailhead and no other services.

The trail starts around 6,300 feet in dry, open foothills and gains height quickly. It crosses Symmes Creek several times before climbing exposed switchbacks toward Anvil Camp. This lower stretch is long, steep and sunny; starting early gives you a better chance of doing the hottest part before the day warms up. Treat water from creeks, lakes and springs before drinking it.

Beyond Anvil Camp, the route becomes rougher and the scenery opens into alpine meadows and glacially carved basins. The last climb to Shepherd Pass is steep, rocky and exposed. Snow can linger into late summer, and a persistent snowfield, talus and steep ground often make the trail impassable to stock above about 10,800 feet. At roughly 12,000 feet, the pass is a high, airy saddle; the boundary sign and the rugged mountain beyond it make the clearest photo stop on the route.

The pass is not the end of the named trail. The route drops about 3.4 more miles down the west side, crosses into Sequoia National Park, and meets the John Muir Trail near Tyndall Creek. That is the point-to-point endpoint represented here. If you turn around at the pass, retrace the whole ascent; if you continue west, you are committing to a backcountry itinerary on the JMT.

Day use on the Inyo side does not require a permit, but overnight trips need a wilderness permit year-round. From May 1 through November 1, the overnight quota is 15 people per day. Campfires are prohibited at Anvil Camp and everywhere above 10,400 feet; store food, trash and scented items in bear-proof containers or counterbalance them. Pets may use surrounding National Forest trails, but they are prohibited on Sequoia trails, so they cannot complete this crossing.

If you only want to reach Shepherd Pass and return to the car, the mapped climb to the pass is about 10.5 miles each way. That makes the pass a roughly 21-mile out-and-back, so it is a serious day rather than a short summit walk. The stored 14-mile figure follows the named trail about 3.4 miles beyond the pass to its JMT junction. Mount Tyndall and Mount Williamson are separate summit objectives reached from side routes; they are not part of this line.