Kings Canyon

From Wikipedia – Home to several giant sequoia groves and the General Grant Tree, the world’s second largest measured tree, this park also features part of the Kings River, sculptor of the dramatic granite canyon that is its namesake, and the San Joaquin River, as well as Boyden Cave. Although Kings Canyon National Park was designated as such in 1940, it subsumed General Grant National Park, which had been established on October 1, 1890 as the United States’ fourth national park.

• Established: 3/4/1940
• Annual Visitors: 699,023
• Size: 461,901 acres

May the 4th be with You!

Not original, but as Larry The Cable Guy would say, “Now that’s funny right there!..”

We saw lots of pitted fruit trees, vineyards, and citrus groves leaving Fresno.  All the agriculture we’ve been seeing this trip have looked amazingly healthy. These crops, groves and orchards make you respect the workers involved to grow them, hand pick the thousands of acres of soft fruits like plums, collect them, box them, deliver to a wholesaler who gets them to a store for us to buy. Thank you!

We drove and in and out of Giant Sequoia National Monument and Sequoia National Forest and in and out Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks today. We are writing this journal as Kings Canyon and will post Sequoia after our adventure in that park tomorrow.

We drove from Fresno which is under 1000 feet in elevation to 6,589 at Kings Canyon Visitor Center by way of Big Stump Entrance. Kings Canyon has a small portion of land at the northwestern top of Sequoia National Park and the rest of Kings Canyon is northeast of Sequoia. The gift shop was open and I was able to go inside and get my pin, postcard and passport book stamp. Kings Canyon Visitor Center is also the location of Grant Grove Village where it was 65 degrees. There’s a market and post office in addition to the gift shop.

We then drove north to the famous General Grant Tree, named in 1867 for Civil War General Ulysses S. Grant. I walked the short distance from the parking lot to see the tree since Rangeley is not allowed on any trails, paved or otherwise. The trail is handicapped accessible and labeled a “trail” : (

In 1956 Fleet General Chester Nimitz dedicated General Grant Tree a national shrine. This magnificent plant is a mere 1,700 years old, 268 feet tall and 40 feet wide.

I am amazed, impressed and humbled standing next to a tree that old. That little seed started roughly when the fall of the Roman Empire was occurring in the 4^th century!

We took the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway northeast to the Roads End. Gary and I both really enjoyed the forests and spectacular scenery as we descended 4000 feet to the Kings River at the bottom of the canyon. Hence the parks name…Kings Canyon. We drove through Sequoia National Forest for a while then returned into Kings Canyon National Park just before Cedar Cove Visitor Center which is closed right now.

We stopped at Grizzly Falls and Rangeley was in heaven! He could legally walk to the falls because we were on national forest land. He was a happy boy playing at the falls! I had a great time taking pictures of the cascading water, the Kings River and a bee that was entertaining me in the beautiful spring growth at rivers edge.

I enjoyed Roaring River Falls (now back in Kings Canyon National Park) as it too was another paved “trail” so Rangeley and Gary went under the bridge to play (dogs have to stay within 6 feet of the pavement. So they were under the pavement.) in the stream while I walked the roughly quarter mile to the heavy flowing 450 foot falls. I could only see the bottom third or so but I love waterfalls and it was a pleasure to witness the powerful water vigorously flowing over the rocks and crashing into the erosion made pool below.

We pulled into Zumwalt Meadows picnic area for lunch and saw three people riding horses with roughly 8-10 pack mules loaded up and riding east. Not sure where they began or where they were going. What a flashback when that was the only mode of transportation at one time in these magnificent protected parks. The Roads End was a loop with lots of hiking options for those without dogs. Kings Canyon Visitor Center to the Roads End is 36 miles, one way, and worth it. It is the only road in the northern section of the park and just opened for the season, yesterday!

After returning the 36 miles back through Grant Grove Village, we drove south on Generals Highway and stopped at the Redwood Mountain Groves. This is the world’s largest group of Redwoods, 10 feet in diameter or more. There are 2,100 of them! The park has been entrusted with their health and care. Thank you!

We took great pictures of the mountains and valleys at Kings Canyon Overlook which faces east into the Sequoia National Forrest.

To get to Three Rivers, CA, where we are staying for the next two nights, we took the Generals Highway south through Sequoia National Park. This road is the most snaked road we’ve ever been on! Starting just after General Sherman Tree at 6,000 ft. with a temperature of 65 degrees, we drove the 20 miles down to Foothills Visitor Center at 1700 ft. and now 85 degrees. Gary went 20 to 30 MPH, with 10 MPH hairpin turns, in low gear, for over an hour getting down and we were not the slowest car!  It would have felt good to be at the bottom if we hadn’t reminded each other that we are going back up again tomorrow to experience Sequoia National Park for the day…and…have to drive the only road through the park to Three Rivers back to the hotel again!

Next park, Sequoia!