Sequoia National Park – It’s All About the Trees

No other tree in the world, as far as I know, has looked down on so many centuries as the sequoia or opens so many impressive and suggestive views into history. — John Muir

Although where we stayed was billed as the closest RV park to the National parks, the road was twisting and full of precipitous drops on the passenger side. It was still a fair distance to the gate. Past the entrance, we turned right, to go into Sequoia, instead of left, to go into Kings Canyon as we had done previously.

From Grant Grove Village, where we came into the parks, it is a 30 mile, 60 minute drive on the Generals Highway down to parking for the Sherman Tree trail. This is a beautiful and heavily forested drive. As we rode through the conifer forest, the music of Josefine and Trine Opsahl – Sterna Paradisae – provided a perfect accompaniment.

This is one of the world’s largest remaining groves of the world’s largest trees. Here, in an area measuring roughly five miles, are over 2,100 trees that measure over 10 miles in diameter. Many have been burned in forest fires but yet, fire is the way that giant sequoias regenerate.

Once parked, it is a half mile hike to the General Sherman Tree. Even taking the sequoias out of the equation, the pines are tall and stately. The forest is hushed, the animals long gone into their hiding places for the day, and the sun plays peek-a-boo with the trees.

Until, that is, we get down to the General Sherman tree, where the other tourists are. Early on a weekday, though, the crowd level is not too bad.

Here it is – the largest tree in the world.

Not the tallest, the oldest, or even the largest around. It is the volume of its trunk. It just keeps growing, to the point where it has more wood than any other tree – 52,500 cubic feet, to be exact. It is 109 feet around its base. Maybe its easier to understand that it would take up three lanes of traffic if you set it down on a highway.

The General Sherman tree was named back in 1879 by a cattleman who had served in the Civil War under General Sherman and greatly admired him. The tree naming continues on the 2.7 mile Congress Trail, where we took a longer hike through the stately sequoia grove.

Many trees here have been burned in the 2021 fire. General Sherman itself had been under threat, but received protective wrap around the base to help it survive.

The stumps of burned trees hold their own special beauty.

Despite the fire, the sequoias still stand tall – one may be damaged, but the next is not.

The whole trail is beautiful, and some parts of it even more so when a pretty waterfall is thrown in across the path.

Tree roots form impossible loops and holes.

What do you do when a sequoia falls on the trail? You simply tunnel under it.

Congress Trail is named for trees that have themselves been given names of the various branches of the US Government. There is the Senate grouping, and there is the President McKinley tree. The rear of the House trees look battle-scarred. Down, maybe, but for sure not out. I thought this was an amusing metaphor for our current House.

Fire generates new growth in the forest, and this is good to see. What will our planet be like when these trees grow tall?

All too soon, it was time to leave the forest. We could have gone further to the Giant Forest Museum, but our truck was over on the other side of General Sherman and up a hill. We hiked back to it and continued down the Generals Highway to the museum. There, I learned a lot more about the trees and how the park has changed its approach to having visitors in it. The focus now is on forest conservation and remediation from years of damage.

We also learned that our next stop to the Moro Rock area of the park would not be possible since the road had not yet been cleared for the summer.

Nothing else to do but have a lovely late lawn chair lunch.

Next time – Cat Haven and RV life