Sequoia National Park
Sequoia National Park is combined with Kings Canyon Park, together they provide peace and contemplation among the huge sequoias, the most enormous living creatures on earth, many of which are nearly 3,000 years old. Enduring, fire charred trees could easily swallow two lanes of highway each. The mountains in the park are gigantic, too – including Mt Whitney (14,505 feet), the highest peak in the lower 48 states. Finally, the park is also home to the giant Kings Canyon, carved into granite cliffs by ancient glaciers and a powerful river. There is a great diversity of plant life here, with dogwood, Lambert pine and monoecious fir, and among the grasses are leopard lily, white hellebore, lupine, yellow lotus, and eagleberry. All of these great natural treasures attract up to 1.6 million visitors each year. However, you can expect peace and quiet alone with wildlife (and black bears) if you hike the trail and quickly get lost in the epic wilderness.”
Video: Sequoia National Park
General Information
Sequoia was declared a national park in 1890, Kings Canyon in 1940. Very different, the two parks are one in the same; admission is one ticket (valid for seven days) and costs $20 for visitors in cars, $10 for bicyclists, motorcyclists, and hikers. For up-to-date and general information, call tel. 559-565-3341 or on the park’s website (www.nps.gov/seki).
>Highway 198 enters Sequoia National Park from the south, beyond the town of Three Rivers at Ash Mountain, where it transitions to Generals Highway. Highway 180 west leads to the Big Stump entrance near Grant Grove before entering King’s Canyon.
.Start at the Giant Forest campground, where you’ll find a motel, and the Park Ranger Information Center at Lodgepole Campground, where you can get a map and information on the most suitable forest walks and hikes. The Congress Trail is the best way to explore the forest. It is an easy 3km route starting at the General Sherman tree, the largest in the county, 84m high and 31m reach at the roots, which continues to grow. Branches begin to grow at 40m, where the tree climbs out to the light, towering above the entire forest. Meeting other large sequoias, Presidential, Senate, House and General Lee, one realizes the words of John Muir that this “tree is the first in the forest to feel the touch of the pink morning rays and the last to say goodbye to the sun”. Another marvelous walk, not at all exhausting, to Sickle Meadow, passes mostly among majestic giants.
.If you want to go deeper into the forest and explore the surrounding area, take the 18 km long Sierra Nevada Trail, stretching from Sickle Meadow to the Bear Meadow campground. Not only is it a marvelous hike. The nearby lake and streams have good trout fishing, and there is also a great opportunity to see red bobcat, coyote, golden eagle, baribal (black bear), spotted skunk, and cougar.
.Visitors
The main communities are Lodgepole Village (tel: 559-565-4436; mid-April to mid-October) in Sequoia Park and Grant Grove Village (tel: 559-565-4307; year-round) in Kings Canyon Park. Both have visitor centers, post offices, markets, ATMs, and public showers (summer only).
.The Foothills Visitor Center (tel: 559-565-3135) at Ash Mountain is open year-round. Cedar Grove Visitor Center (Cedar Grove Visitor Center; tel: 559-565-3793) and Mineral King Forestry (Mineral King Ranger Station; tel: 559-565-3768) are open in the summer. For information on schedules for visitor centers and other services, see the park’s free newspaper.
Expensive gasoline is available at Hume Lake (year-round) and Stony Creek (summer only) within the national forest, outside the park boundaries.
.Transportation
In summer, free buses run to Giant Forest and Lodgepole Village in Sequoia National Park. Sequoia Shuttle buses (tel: 877-287-4453; www. sequoiashuttle.com) connect the park to the towns of Three Rivers and Visalia (Visalia; round-trip ticket $15), where you can transfer to an Amtrak train; reservations are required. There is currently no public transportation to Kings Canyon National Park.
.
