"Sierra Nevada at its Best - SEQUOIA NAT... " a Sequoia National Park Travel Page by mtncorg

When you think of Sequoia NP, you probably think of the gigantic trees found in groves near the 7000 foot/2121 meter level - and rightfully so. These trees are magnificence personified. Their ancient age and tremendous girth are incredible to behold. But to think of vast forests of sequoias is to think wrong. You have to go many miles even after entering the Park, before reaching the trees at Giant Grove. Sequoia NP is the smallest of the three Sierran national parks, but even at that, the Park stretches across Range of Light from the giant sequoian groves in the west to the top of the highest peak in the Lower 48 States - Mt Whitney. Like neighboring Kings Canyon NP to the north, Sequoia NP is a park of vast backcountry wilderness. Geography, topography and politics have left a contiguous park meade up of many different parts - low deep canyons, high forested plains, steep mountain peaks and vast alpine basins.

As with Kings Canyon NP, the casual tourist will only get glimpses of the awesome nature of Sequoia NP. Grand trails take off from CA 198 - the Generals Highway - allowing you to explore for days, weeks or months. The casual visitor will see the General Sherman Tree - the World's largest living thing. A visitors center, campgrounds and other amenities are centered in and around here. For the rest of the Prak's highlights you will need backcountry permits, for they lay far off the roads. Main entry points include the Generals Highway, the Mineral King road and passes along the eastern Sierra crest accessed of US 395: Kearsarge Pass via Onion Valley (see Independence tips); rugged Shepherd Pass (just south of Onion Valley); Mt Whitney trail - complicated quota and permit system in place (- see the Mt Whitney ranger station website for the latest details) and the passes out of the Cottonwood Lakes in the southeast corner of the Park.