Packing for Adventure

Our time in Sequoia was split over two and a half-ish days, not including our time allocated for the Kings Canyon National Park side. We made the most of what we could see in a short time frame. While we occasionally felt rushed, I think we did a solid job maximizing our stay. For a slower-paced visit, we easily could have added another full day split between Sequoia and Kings Canyon.

Day 1

Our day began in Joshua Tree National Park, followed by roughly a five-hour drive to our campsite near Sequoia. Once we settled in at Three Rivers Hideaway, we headed out for a preliminary drive to get our first taste of the park. From camp, it took about an hour of winding mountain roads to reach our first stop.

General Sherman Sneak Peak: 1st Stop

Seeing General Sherman is non-negotiable. It’s the world’s largest living tree by volume. It’s the “Mona Lisa” of the park. People will literally come just to see this tree and then leave, much like visitors who pop into the Louvre Museum for a quick (and crowded) peek at the Mona Lisa and head out. The park makes it extremely easy to funnel visitors here, especially if you have a disability placard on your car. There is a dedicated accessible parking lot that provides closer access to the trail. For everyone else, the walk is about 1.2 miles round-trip with a very steep return climb. We kept this visit short, planning to return the following day for a longer look.

Tunnel Rock and Hospital Rock: 2nd Stop

These two stops are close to the park entrance and just minutes apart, so it made sense to group them together. You can no longer drive under Tunnel Rock, but you can climb on top of it, which I loved.

Hospital Rock was also worth a quick stop – about five to ten minutes is plenty. Historically, it was used by members of the Potwisha people for traditional healing practices, adding an important cultural layer to the visit.

After this, we headed back to camp. Between driving and short stops, most of the day had been spent on the road.

Day 2

Moro Rock: 3rd Stop

Moro Rock is a standout stop. The climb is steep and stair-heavy, but it’s short at about half a mile round-trip. It’s more than worth the effort. The panoramic views from the top are incredible, and it’s fun standing on the rock you’ve been seeing from the road below.

Crescent Meadow/Trail of the Sequoias: 4th Stop

We knew this stop would be a longer one, but we also knew it would be the right thing for us. It’s a Choose Your Own Adventure type of trail. It can be longer or shorter depending on the path you choose. I think we meant to make it shorter but ended up doing a 7-mile loop.

We started at the Crescent Meadow Loop, stopped to see Tharp’s Log, and connected to the Trail of the Sequoias. The Trail of the Sequoias is a less popular trail, presumably due to its length, but it’s mostly flat, peaceful, and incredibly beautiful. It was reminiscent of a visit to the Redwoods (specifically the Boy Scout Tree Trail) where you feel completely immersed among ancient, towering trees. We truly felt deep in the heart of the park here.

*A note about Tharp’s Log: It’s cool if you’re already passing by, but it’s not worth going out of your way for. You can’t get close enough to see Tharp’s “house” and the lack of sunlight in the log makes it hard to see much detail anyway.

Tunnel Log (not the Tunnel Rock): 5th Stop

Chris is a sucker for driving through trees. We had to wait in a short line of other cars getting pictures and video driving under this fallen Sequoia Tree. It’s a fun stop for sure! If there’s more than a few cars ahead of you, it’s okay to miss.

Hanging Rock: 6th Stop

Amazing view! But it’s really steep. The payoff is excellent, especially since you get a great angle of Moro Rock. Careful though, there’s no railing and it would be a loooooong fall.

Picnic: 7th Stop

One of our favorite things to do at National Parks is to pack a delicious picnic lunch and finding a scenic place to enjoy it. We always bring the fixin’s for a delicious sandwich (the secret is olives) and SunChips, along with some carefully iced fresh beverages (Diet Dr. Pepper for me, and usually Mountain Dew Code Red for Chris).

Congress Tree Trail and General Sherman Revisited: 8th Stop

Next we made our way back to the General Sherman tree. This time we took our time and waited in line to get a crowd-free photo in front of the sign. I love how at every National Park we visit, we are with like-minded nature lovers who are happy to take turns snapping photos for each other.

Despite our long hike that morning, I was feeling FOMO for the Congress Tree Trail, which is accessible from the General Sherman tree. Chris was annoyed that I wanted to do it, but I just didn’t want to take the chance that I missed some key trees! The highlights are the President Tree, McKinley Tree, and the House and Senate tree clusters. It’s a really fun trail, but Chris was right that we would have been okay missing a couple trees. We basically duplicated part of what we’d already done that morning, though a much shorter version of it.

Big Tree Trail: 9th Stop

This short, easy loop is packed with massive sequoias and features a stunning meadow, along with interpretive signs explaining why the trees thrive here. The trail itself is fantastic, but the parking situation is frustrating. There’s a small lot reserved for cars with disability placards right next to the trail, and it was unclear where standard parking was supposed to be. We think parking at the nearby museum is the intended option, but after 10+ miles of hiking, Chris opted to rest while I enjoyed the loop solo. From the dropoff point at the accessible parking, it was a 0.7-mile loop. I think the hike from the museum would have more than doubled the length of the walk.

It was absolutely worth it. This area felt especially lush and peaceful, and I was completely in awe the entire time.

Stay Tuned

Sequoia National Park is a wonderful place to marvel at nature’s giants. There’s so much to see, and we loved every second of it. After this we were destined for the Kings Canyon National Park, and we planned to spend some of that time on a return trip to the spots of Sequoia National Park we hadn’t seen yet.

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