Leslie and David's Wanderings: 27 October 2019 Kings Canyon National Park

We decided to go for the furthest away of the three national parks today. We programmed the GPS to take us to the Kings Canyon Visitor Center in Grants Grove. The GPS took us through some back roads that were narrow but scenic until we intersected CA-180, which led us to the park. We noticed on the drive that it was very hazy due to smoke from the fires to the southwest of us ,which limited our visibility all day. The park was the third national park (Yellowstone was #1 and Sequoia was #2) created, in 1890, and was called General Grant NP. It was created to protect an old growth grove of Giant Sequoia Trees, including the General Grant Sequoia tree. It was later expanded to include Kings Canyon and some surrounding areas and renamed. David backpacked in Kings Canyon back in 1984 but he has not been back since. The actual canyon has been compared to Yosemite in beauty. The canyon is at the end of CA-180, which leaves the Grant Grove portion of the NP and winds through Sequoia National Forest before dropping down and winding along the Kings River before reentering the park. To see the really nice parts of the park requires a multi-day backpacking trip, something we did not have time for. We stopped at the Grants Grove visitor center where we collected our 56th Passport Stamp, watch the park movie, walk through the exhibits and of course buy David’s NP hat (Actually he got hats for Kings Canyon and Sequoia). After talking with the ranger, and finding out the CA-180 was open all the way to roads end (not what the website was saying), so we made our plan. We first drove to the Grants Grove and did the Grants Grove Loop (1.1 miles, 112 feet of elevation gain, 316 calories burned) where we got to see the General Grant Giant Sequoia tree, the nations Christmas Tree. The General Grant Tree is 40 feet in diameter, 268 feet tall, is approximately 1700 years old. It is the third largest tree in the world by volume. We also were able to walk through the trunk of a fallen Giant Sequoia tree that was used for shelter by loggers and settlers in the 1890s! It’s amazing how long these trees last, even after they die. After a quick picnic lunch nearby, we got back on 180 and drove to the roads end. The trees are changing colors with lots of yellows and reds which made the drive beautiful. The road barely goes into the actual Kings Canyon before it ends. You must hike from there to really see the canyon itself. We did not have time to hike since we needed to get back to Etta and it was a long twisty road back. We stopped off at Roaring River Falls trail and walked the short half-mile trail into the falls. We also stopped at the Grizzly Falls in the national forest. After exiting the park, we decided to go back via Generals Highway through Sequoia National Park. This gave us the opportunity to stop and see the General Sherman Giant Sequoia tree. The General Sherman Giant Sequoia is the world’s largest tree by volume. It’s 275 feet high, 36.5 feet in Diameter, and approximately 2200 years old. There is another Sequoia tree that is taller (311 feet) and another that is older (approximately 3300 years old) but General Sherman is the largest. The rest of the drive back to the Wanderer was only 48 mile but took almost two hours due to the windy road through the park. We will return to Sequoia NP tomorrow to go to the visitor center and do some hiking.