Parks 41 & 42: Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks: Day 3

Top of the walkway to the General Sherman Tree

11/30/13. Today, our last day in the parks, was busy and full of amazing sights. We had breakfast and checked out of the John Muir Lodge - which we loved, by the way. It was clean, quiet, and had a wonderful big community room, all nestled into the trees. Having no TV did not bother us, but it was a bit tough that the wifi didn't work. We could get cell phone service at the lodge and visitor's center area, but nowhere else in the park.

Frost on the railing at Lodgepole Visitor's Center

We headed south on the Generals Highway into Sequoia National Park. We tried to stop at the Lodgepole Visitor's Center but it was already closed for the winter. The temperature was just under freezing and the frost made everything sparkle.

Frost on a pine tree at Lodgepole Visitor's Center

We continue to work our way through miles of tremendously tall pine and cedar trees wondering where the Sequoias were. All of sudden we entered a grove of tremendous sequoia trees and from there on we were amazed at the amount and size of the trees.

We stopped first at the General Sherman tree which is the largest tree on earth and a big tourist spot. There were quite a few people, but it wasn't crowded. The walk downhill was very steep with terrific views of the Giant Forest. We took lots of touristy photos and enjoyed walking among the giants.

General Sherman Tree

Top of General Sherman Tree

We left this area and continued south to the Giant Forest Museum. We got our passports stamped and looked at the exhibits. We learned more about how important fire is for helping sequoias reseed and how the parks have been preserving the area - including removing many of the buildings and asphalt that had been built up through the 1970's.

Brad on the start to the Moro Rock trail

We left the museum and drove to Moro rock which is a granite dome rock formation with a 400 step staircase winding up the side. The staircase, like other projects in this park, was completed by the Civilian Conservation Corps. We headed up the steps and got most of the way before deciding that we'd gone high enough. We got incredible views of the mountains from the way up:

Panorama of Moro Rock

Climbing Moro Rock Staircase

View from Moro Rock

The Parker Grove of Trees

We next headed to the Tunnel Tree and waited in line to drive through the tree tunnel with the other tourists. It was fun because we helped each others' families take pictures and there was a great sense of silly fun.

We also stopped by the "auto tree" where people years ago had filled a fallen tree with concrete and drove a car on it. Brad and Catherine had fun pretending they were driving on it too.

We left that area and headed south on an extremely winding road down the mountains. Brad drove with the car in first or second gear the whole way. We stopped frequently at the turn outs to admiring the changing ecosystem as we got into lower altitudes.

We finally arrived at the Foothills Visitors Center at the southern most point of the park. We got our stamps and looked at the exhibits. We were very glad that we decided to start our trip up north at Kings Canyon and work our way down through Sequoia. It seemed a natural progression and worked well logistically. We were sorry that many roads and attractions such as the crystal cave, were closed for the winter but it gives us a reason to come back again!

We left the park and since there was nowhere to get food south of Wuksachi Village we were really hungry. We stopped at Case Mendoza in Three Rivers and had terrific Mexican food. Big portions and great flavor. We'd definitely go back if we were visiting the park again. From there we made the 5 hour ride back to LA. Thankfully the traffic was good and we got home tired and happy.

Parks 41 & 42: Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks: Day 2

11/29/13. Catherine and I got up early and headed to the main room in the lodge and got a fire going in the huge fireplace. We started a very difficult round puzzle and got help from a charming little 7-year old boy named Thomas. He kept us company until we had breakfast at the lodge restaurant.

We learned from the Park Ranger that Ponderosa Pine bark smells like butterscotch!!

After breakfast, we headed north in the car on the Generals Highway to the Junction View. We stopped at various pull outs along the way, awe struck at the amazing views of the mountains. We left Kings Canyon and entered the Sequoia National Forest area along the way. Because we were outside of the park, we stopped to get some huge and beautiful Jeffrey pine cones.

Collecting pine cones (outside the park, of course!)

We also stopped at one pull-out and hiked down to a rock out-cropping where we were surrounded by unobstructed mountain views. We enjoyed sitting quietly amid the splendor. (I pretended I was John Muir seeing this for the first time!) We also discovered we could take panoramic photos with our phone cameras.

Hume Lake

We continued south towards Hume Lake where there is a dam and man-made lake. There is also a large campground in the area. We got out here and walked around the lake area.




As we continued south we passed other viewing spots and entered the Sequoia National Park. We completed a full loop, heading back to the Grant Grove area of Kings Canyon.

When we returned to the lodge, we had a late lunch and then hung out at the common room for the afternoon, working on our puzzle, getting some school work done, and playing card games. It was a relaxing end to our day.

Working on our puzzle

Catherine and Brad walking towards the restaurant from the Lodge

Parks 41 & 42: Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, Day 1

11/29/13. On Thanksgiving morning, Catherine, Brad and I left Burbank at 8:30 am and drove north through the mountains on I5. Once over the mountains, we were amazed at the agricultural fields that stretched for mile after mile after mile on the flat valley. Eventually, we worked our way east on Kings Canyon Road and entered the park.

The views were beautiful and the weather was clear and warm. We stopped first at the Kings Canyon Visitor's Station in the Grant Grove section of Kings Canyon National Park and got maps and an orientation from a very helpful ranger. I felt a little bit bad that she was working on Thanksgiving. The John Muir Lodge is close by, so we checked in and unloaded the car, being sure to take in all food, and anything smelly to prevent the bears from being interested in our car.

We bundled up and headed out to the trail around the General Grant tree. As expected, the trees were incredible and it was hard to even comprehend the massive height and width. Even the sequoia cones are huge! We enjoyed the trail, climbing around some of the trees and through the woods. As the sun got lower in the sky we worked our way back to the visitor's center. Having had some experience in the woods, we watched the park film and read the exhibits with more interest and understanding.

We returned to our room in the John Muir Lodge which is a new structure tucked in the woods and very comfortable. We are at 6600' elevation.

Resting on the porch outside our room at the John Muir Lodge

We rested a while, chatted with Jason, and changed for dinner, then set out on the drive south through the park on the General's Highway to Wuksachi Lodge where we had our Thanksgiving dinner. This lodge is more upscale and the dining room had huge windows overlooking the woods and a huge fireplace. The food was exceptionally good - we all thought it was the best Thanksgiving food we remember. Catherine and I had a fantastic vegetarian dish of butternut squash lasagna and Brad had baked halibut. It was a wonderful meal!

After dinner we returned to our car and were stunned by the night sky. Living in New Jersey, there is never a time we can see even a small part of the stars we could see. They were so brilliant it looked like a show put on by Disney. Both directly overhead and peeking through the trees were millions of points of light, some so bright they seemed like we could touch them.

Night sky in Grant's Grove from  http://thegoldensieve.com/andromeda-and-the-primeval-sequoia/

Brad drove us back up the windy mountain road to our lodge - about a 45 minute drive. When we got back we dropped right into bed, exhausted. It had been a terrific Thanksgiving day.