We have decided that by end-Sept., we will take a northern route back to the East Coast, i.e., Interstate 80 through Salt Lake City, Denver, etc . From northern CA, we have driven south first, through the middle of the State and are visiting the “must-see” Nat. Parks from south to north: Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Yosemite NPs.
Driving through Sonoma and Napa valleys, the California wine areas, we became aware of the water shortages. Lots of dry land and signs posted blaming Congress for not alloting more water to California. Here a photo taken from the car, somewhere east of San Francisco.
We entered Sequoia NP from the south-west. After all the rain we had had in the north-west of CA, it was nice to be under blue skies and in the sun.
Earlier road builders decided to build a road under this rock. Today, the road bypasses it and Tunnel Rock has become a photo-op.
Sequoia NP is of course famous for its groves of very large trees: Sequoias. These are related and similar to the Redwoods we saw on the CA coast but they are a little different. They grow very tall but not quite as tall as Redwoods. They are bigger, however, as far as weight and volume and also grow older. They are the biggest living things on earth. The oldest on record is 3200 years.
In the 19th and early part of the 20th century, lumber companies devastated large stands of these magnificent trees. Fortunately, here also, there was a public outcry, lobbying and fund-raising. And nearly all land on which Sequoias remained is now in protected public land, part of Nat. Parks and Forests.
Below you see Moro Rock, 2050m above the sea; we were driving up a winding road when we took this picture. Later, we climbed it.
You’ll see a bunch of photos of these beautiful trees. We spent a day and half hiking on trails through the Giant Forest. Some of these trees have names. I asked Betsie to stand next to them so you get an idea of the proportions.
The tree on the left, outside the Giant Forest Museum, is called the Sentinel.
Here, we are working our way up Moro Rock. It’s a popular spot so the Park Service installed stairs to the top.
And here the vistas from the top of Moro Rock
One Sequoia toppled and fell against the side of Moro Rock. You can see some people on the trail close to the top of the tree; it gives you a perspective on its size.
This fallen tree has been photographed many times in the 1920s and 1930s, with cars on top to show the size of the trunk. Now, you can only park next to it and walk on it because the trunk cracked and is unsafe for cars.
More Sequoias…..
I stopped in time; 8ft clearance is not enough for our camper
A fallen giant with statistics to give you an idea about size and age. And look at these roots!
A meadow along the trail through the Giant Forest
And now the biggest of them all: The General Sherman Tree; although not the tallest, it’s the largest tree in the world as far as weight and volume. Age: 2200 years.
A black bear made a brief appearance during our hike in the Giant Forest
Hard to photograph a fast-moving bird: a red-breasted nuthatch (for the Dutch: boomklever)
More trees; to the right: The President
On the Congress Trail, you find groups of trees named after the Senate and the House
And General Lee (living in VA, I took a special interest; Lee is the famous general leading the southern (Confederate) troops, during the Civil War)
“The Room Tree”
Many trees show scars caused by fires. They are able to survive forest fires because of very thick bark that doesn’t easily burn. Fires are needed to remove the brush on the ground so seeds can germinate.
A Hoary Marmott showed himself briefly
Not only the trees are big, the mushrooms too
These cones are not from the Sequoia tree but another big conifer that grows here: Sugar Pine. Sequoia cones are the size of an egg.
Probably a Mountain Quail.
An interesting arrangement…
A squirrel trying to move a cone larger than himself.
Betsie working on her diarty outside at night. The temp. is very agreeable here.
We drove to the more northerly part of Sequoia NP where you find this famous tree: General Grant, the Nation’s Christmas Tree.
Next, we visited Kings Canyon NP; it borders on and is north of Sequoia NP.
Below some views along the way into Kings Canyon.
We hiked to Mist Falls; below some views of the canyon during our hike
It was hot, despite the relatively high altitude (1500 to 1700m above sea level). We were happy to reach the Falls and take our lunch break before descending again
Views from the trail on the way down
Our last day in Kings Canyon, we hiked along the Kings river, starting by these Falls
We spotted a woodpecker I had never seen before. Later, with the help of the birds book of the ranger, we identified it as the White-headed woodpecker, a Western species (CA, OR, WA). Since it shows no red on its head, this is a female
There were annoying bugs; they didn’t bite but were around your face and eyes. So we donned our head nets.
Beautiful “Zumwalt Meadow” in Kings Canyon
Wildfires are mostly good as they clean out the underbrush, creating the right conditions for Sequoia seeds. But also many other trees suffer and die…..
Views of Kings Canyon Wall on the way out.
Before it became Sequoia/Kings Canyon became Nat. Parks/Nat. Forests, there was extensive logging going on. We visited: “Stump Meadow,” a kind of graveyard for Sequoias. Most were cut in the late 19th century……
But they are making a come-back. In a 1000 years, people will be able to see new giants (assuming the world still exists)
As we are posting these blogs, we are in Fresno, CA, on our way to Yosemite NP. That will be the last one of the major Nat. Parks, we are “doing” on this trip, before heading back East……
All the best,
Henk and Betsie
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