The Adventures of Suze

In Spring 2022, Jarrett and I finally set out on our postponed California trip that was originally supposed to happen in 2020. Our first stop on the trip was Sequoia National Park. Located deep in the hills of Three Rivers, California, this is one of oldest national parks in the country! The park is jointly managed along with Kings Canyon National Park and they are connected by the Generals Highway. Most people visit both if they’re in the area. 

The drive into Sequoia from the town of Three Rivers isn’t long mileage wise, but due to the sharp switchbacks and winding roads, it takes about an hour to get into the main part of the park (Moro Rock trailhead, as a reference). When driving, you quickly gain elevation along the road. The views were beautiful but nothing tops the pure awe of suddenly seeing a giant sequoia tree appear on the side of the road. 

Our time was limited at both parks so we stuck to popular tourist spots and front country hikes. Even though we didn’t get to do long hikes, we still enjoyed wandering around through all the giant sequoias. It was incredibly humbling to feel so small. One of the hikes we did in Kings was called the Big Stump Loop (see more details below). It was really disheartening to see how many stumps were left from the trees that were cut down in the past. However, seeing all the new baby sequoias growing on this trail did make me happy! Hopefully these will live a safe life and grow into maturity.

There is so much more to see and do in both parks, especially if you are comfortable in the backcountry. I’d love to go back in the future to check out harder to reach locations. 

Important reminder: Many trails in the parks are at 5,000 feet elevation or more, so be prepared for high altitude if you aren’t used to it. Drink plenty of water and don’t do anything too strenuous until you are acclimated.

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𝐃𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐕𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝: May 2022

Sequoia 𝐄𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡𝐞𝐝: September 25, 1980

Kings Canyon Established: March 4, 1940

𝐋𝐨𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧: Three Rivers, California

𝐏𝐚𝐫𝐤 F𝐞𝐞: $20-$35, or use the America the Beautiful annual pass

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Hike Recommendations:

• Easy Hikes
  • Congress Trail (SNP) – If you want to see General Sherman, the largest tree by volume, then you’re going to want to check out this trail. There are a lot of huge trees you can get up close and personal with here too!
    • Click here for AllTrails
    • 2.9 miles, 482 ft. elevation gain
  • General Grant Grove (KCNP) – More big trees, more epic photo opportunities! It’s worth stopping here to check out all the trees, but especially The Fallen Monarch, that was my favorite!
    • Click here for AllTrails
    • 0.6 miles, 32 ft. elevation gain
• Moderate Hikes
  • Little Baldy (SNP) – We barely saw any other people during our hike, but we did see lots of marmots! The summit is a completely bald rock face (hence the name) with 360° views. 
    • Click here for AllTrails
    • 3.3 miles, 800 ft. elevation gain
  • Big Stump Loop (KCNP) – The Mark Twain Stump, which I believe is the largest on the loop, has a staircase built onto the side of it so you can actually walk on top of it!
    • Click here for AllTrails
    • In full disclosure, we didn’t do the full loop, just went to the Mark Twain stump and back for time purposes (about a mile round trip)
    • 1.7 miles, 196 ft. elevation gain
    • Bathrooms available
• Hard Hikes
  • Moro Rock (SNP) – A quick but fulfilling hike. Expect a crowd. It’s worth it for the absolutely gorgeous views from the summit! Be prepared for 350 stone steps.
    • Click here for AllTrails
    • 0.5 miles, 183 ft. elevation gain
    • There are railings along the side of the trail to give those with a fear of heights a little extra comfort.
    • Per Sequoia’s website, it sounds like the road closes to private vehicles on the weekends, so use of a shuttle is required. Make sure you do your research in advance so you don’t miss out on the 360º epic views.
• Hikes I want to do but haven’t yet
  • Cedar Grove Overlook
  • Zumwalt Meadow
  • Mist Falls
  • Monarch Lakes

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Things to see and do in and near the park

• Explore Crescent Meadow Road (SNP) – Some stops along this road include the following
  • Buttress Tree – This tree unexpectedly fell June 3, 1959. The roots are incredible!
  • Parker Group – A group of clustered trees you can wander around. Getting to see the scale of the trees up close is so impressive.
  • Tunnel Log – How cool is it that you can drive your car through a tree? It fell across the road in the 1930s and instead of removing it, a tunnel was created!

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Lodging suggestions: 

• Three Rivers – We stayed at a tiny cabin in town called “The Sequoia Hut” when we visited, but I’m not sure if it’s still available to rent.
• You can camp in the park or try to find lodging outside. There are some hotels near the Ash Meadows entrance of Sequoia but not a ton. There are cabins available at Totem Market as well. From a brief search, it does appear there are more lodging options in town now than there were when we visited in 2022.

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Suggestions on food/drinks/shop:

• Totem Market & Gifts – we got dinner and a beer here. They were closing up for the night, but were nice enough to serve us and let us sit and eat while they worked on their nightly clean up. I still dream about the California Chicken Wrap I had there!
• We only ate out one time, so I can’t provided other recommendations. The choices are somewhat limited though, so make sure you do your research beforehand.

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There is so much more I’d like to do in both parks. It’s hard to accomplish a lot with only two days, so I’d definitely recommend multiple days at each park if you want to see more. I hope this at least gives you a good idea of where to start if you’re planning a visit to Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park.

📍I acknowledge the lands mentioned in this post are the ancestral lands of the Nyyhmy (Western Mono/Monache) people.