Kern River Camping

Camping is great here nearly year round, but campfires restrictions are often tight in dry summer months and into late fall. The Kern River draws visitors from Southern California, as well as Central Cal. It is the southern most big river of the Sierra Nevada mountain range. Located near a few big Sequoia trees, the Kern River winds thru Golden Trout Wilderness & Sequoia National Forest, dumping into Lake Isabella before heading west to the flatlands of Bako.

The smaller & lesser known south fork of the Kern River is located way up top at Monache; Granite peaks, joshua trees, sage meadows & wilderness near Olancha Peak, on the very border of the North Mojave desert.

Plenty cool stuff to see and do around the Lower Kern Canyon:

Alta Sierra
Domelands Wilderness
Fairview CA
Golden Trout Wilderness
Kennedy Meadows
Kernville CA
Lake Isabella
Pondersosa
Remington Hot Springs
Road's End
Sequoia National Forest
Wofford Heights CA

Upper Kern is often thought of as anything north of Kernville, but in reality the Upper Kern River comes from the headwaters south of Mount Whitney on the Eastern Sierra. True wilderness, the rugged portion of this river is north of the Johnsondale Bridge, leads into the Golden Trout Wilderness.

Wildflowers on the Kern start in March & continue into May.

Upper elevations on Sherman's Pass Road lead to camp seclusion.

Kicking it on the Kern River below Fairview, CA

Total Escape usually camps along the Kern River in the Spring & we have a decade worth of great outdoor photos to share with you. Kern for camping, anytime of the year.