"My friend Brett and I were on vacation this week in the Porterville area in Tulare County and felt like poking around the Southern Sierra. We wanted to hike Sirretta Peak to the southeast, but we got a late start as that hike is 7-8 miles r/t, so we drove up the Western Divide Hwy and then down to Johnsondale, and then up Sherman Pass Road to Sherman Pass Vista. The hike is short, about 4 miles r/t, and with about 800-900 feet gain (some uphill on the return as well). The trail is ducked in places, as it becomes faint from time to time. We lost the trail briefly on the out trip to the peak, but reconnected shortly before the last summit push. On the hike back, we really lost the trail, and we headed in a southeast direction, keeping the peak slightly to the left. We crested the ridgeline heading in that direction, and found the trail and familiar landmarks, and were fine on the return. The extra route finding and retracing probably cost us about a mile extra of steep cross-country walking and about 150' extra gain! Despite my blunder, We were proud to summit our first Sierra Nevada peak! There are wonderful stands of Western White Pine (Pinus monticola) and Red Fir (Abies ..." — brianpowell • Aug 4, 2018