Ponderosa is a census-designated place (CDP) in Tulare County, California. Ponderosa sits at an elevation of 7,231 feet (2,204 m). The 2010 United States census reported Ponderosa's population was 16. Ponderosa can be reached from Porterville by 43 curvy miles on a combination of California State Route 190 and the county-maintained Western Divide Highway with an elevation gain of 6,772 feet.