Sequoia and Kings Canyon NP

After Yosemite, we continued our exploration of the Sierra Nevada mountains by heading north to Sequoia and Kings Canyon NP. The two parks are right next to each other and under one management so it's almost like they are one big park.

I thought it would be interesting to do a little old fashioned "contrast and compare". Perhaps it's just me, but I remember and understand relationships between plants, animals, ecosystems and places better if I compare, categorize, something unknown against something known. Please forgive me if you find this part boring … you can just skip ahead. 😂 Sequoia and Kings Canyon (S&KC) vs Yosemite vs Williston and a couple of other spots in VT.

Category Location Result

Altitude. S&KC- 1,300'- 14,000'*

Yosemite- valley 4,000'

Mnts. 7,000'+

Williston- 400'

Mt Mansfield- 4,393'

Snowfall (Ave)

S&KC- 219"

Yosemite- valley 29"

Mnts. 180"

Williston- 66"

Cabot,VT- 150"

(2023)

S&KC- 714"

Yosemite- valley 145"

Mnts. 434"

Williston- 72"

Rainfall: (ave/yr)

S&KC- 26"

Yosemite- 37"

Williston- 40"

Tree size: Williston- Regular sized

Yosemite- Some regular, Some big

S&KC- GIGANTIC COLOSSAL TREES

To the best of my knowledge the info represented above is correct, however it is the result of a fairly cursery Internet search, so ... You know what that means.

*The huge variation in altitude of the S&KC NP is due to the difference between the mountain peaks, many greater than 14,000' and the deepest depths of Kings Canyon at 1,300'.

Interestingly, this park combo contains 24 out of the 27 peaks in the Sierra Nevada range that are greater than 13,799'.

We, however, pretty much stayed at altitudes between 6,000' and 9'000' while in the park. The roads down into the canyon were closed due to damage from the great snows and we didn't attempt to climb up any of the peaks. Whew.

We did encounter quite a lot of snow still hanging about, and while the snow in Yosemite was melting rapidly, most of this snow … not so much.

I have to say I was thrilled that it wasn't nearly as crowded as Yosemite had been and hands down it was by far the winner of all the parks so far for sighting wildlife and birds! So many birds! So you know that means, I considered this park combo a big hit.

On to pics!

Let's start with the trees. The sequoias are so impossibly huge it's hard to comprehend their immensity and even harder to photograph. But I tried.

Sequoias are very interesting trees. The bark is thick and fibrous and it feels sort of spongy. It can be up to three feet thick which protects the trees from fire, insect damage and rot.

Below is one end of a tree that was used as a home by a couple of brothers. They hollowed out the trunk, had an opening on each end, 4 rooms and windows! I also thought the lines and patterns in the wood of this tree root that was felled over 100 years ago was so incredibly well preserved and fascinating.

Sequoias are endangered. They are only grow naturally on the western slopes of the Sierra Nevadas in California.

I love how moss has grown along this stump.

Have I mentioned that these trees are big? Martin standing on the Mark Twain tree. It was cut and a slab taken to the world's fair before people in the east would believe they were really that big. They then used the "stump" as a stage for dances, plays, concerts, etc. It you look closely you can just make it the handrail to the stairs that they cut into the side of the stump.

Sequoias are one of the oldest living tree species on earth. They can live to be over 3,000 years old.

And just how big are they? I'm glad you asked. Sequoias are the largest trees in the world by volume. They grow to about 300' plus fairly quickly, but rarely, if ever 400', then each year after that, they continue to grow by increasing their circumference, width. Most of their branches are towards the top of the tree and are typically up to 8' in diameter.

You can see how tiny I look in the pic below. It's not very often that anything makes me look or feel tiny. 😂

The General Sherman tree is the largest tree in the world. The volume is 52,500'³ and it weighs more than 1,385 tons.

If the trunk were filled with gas, it would be enough for a car that got 25 mpg to drive around the planet more than 350 times!

As we hiked around the groves and explored, we found these delightful hidden meadows. The greens of early spring abound (even if the calendar said mid-June).

Dogwood

A cabin in the grove The brothers who lived in the log eventually built this cabin to live in. It had windows on two sides and a green roof before it was fashionable. (haha)

But only on one side, the other side was sequoia shakes.

One day we hiked up to Tokopah Falls. The trail followed the river, was really delightful and included several snow field crossings. Although I have to say I was definitely huffing and puffing on the way up, just not as much available oxygen at these altitudes, or so I told myself 😂 But besides the snow fields,

there were also signs of spring…

and a deer …

and a bear!

He lumbered around a fallen tree not far from the trail. Certainly less than 50'. I was pretty shocked and it took me a bit to get my camera out. So, a great butt shot. 🤷 haha. 😂 For the record, this was not taken with my super zoom. He wasn't very interested in us though. He came around the log, looked at us, then moved on. He had an agenda and we were not on it! I think that's a good thing. I appreciated his shaggy coat and loved his cinnamon color. The same color as the sequoias.

The falls

I know it's kind of hard to pick out in this pic, but the water actually goes under the snow/ice at one point. And nearly all of the white is snow.

Falls in background, very dirty snow in foreground

Several "bonus" falls over the side

Some wildlife shots

Another deer

a buck with velvet covered antlers

and another butt shot (I call it my BBS, buck butt shot) 😂

Even though it was fairly cold, highs in the 50s and there was snow on the ground, the lizards were out.

As were the marmots. I think of marmots as sort of like a mountain woodchuck. They live in rocky places but love to eat and gather grass and greens. They're pretty cute, yes?

Another deer. This time a spikehorn resting under a tree.

and here's one in one of those hidden meadows.

Here's a little cutie.

And speaking of those magical hidden meadows, that's where we found this guy! He was just chomping down on the fresh new grasses. We watched him for over half an hour grazing around the meadow. He was at a safer distance, super zoom in use here, and there were some trees between us as well.

At one point he decided he wanted to try the grass on the other side of a large log in an area that had some standing water. He was so intent on eating that he didn't really pay attention to where he was walking and instead of climbing onto the log, he slipped off it into the water. A big splash! I actually laughed out loud. Silly ol' bear. He kind of shook himself off and then proceeded to try again. He was successful on his second attempt. 😂 But I have to say he looked pretty pathetic with his haunches all dripping wet. I had no idea that bears ate grass. I thought they ate berries and ... stuff??? I learn something new everyday! One thing is for sure, both bears that we saw had clearly just gotten up from a long winters nap and were h-u-n-g-r-y!

From one of the largest mammals to one of the smallest insects…

This little ant was tugging this sunflower seed that was sooooooo much bigger than he was, across a paved path. And it was actually moving. I mean, really? How??? 😂

A few wildflowers

And birds, so many birds

White-headed woodpecker

Yellow-rumped warbler

Canyon wren

Red-breasted nuthatch

Lincoln sparrow

Fox sparrow

Look in the upper right, a hummingbird

We climbed Moro rock twice, because it was hazy the first time, haha. A view from about 3/4 of the way up.

The climb. 350 steps to the top. (and did I mention that we were at about 6,500', puff, puff and we did it twice, puff, puff, puff!)

And the top. Every direction was stunning.

Some of those 14,000' peaks in this view.

This was the closest we could get to the actual Kings Canyon. A rim road was open and you could stop and take pics, but no admittance into the canyon. They were actively working on road repairs, but it wasn't open by the time we had to leave.

They had a fire a few years back. While sequoias are fairly fire resistant, many of the other trees in the park are not. 🫤

I know the national park service is changing its attitude about fires, They consider them part of the natural cycle and necessary for the life of the ecosystem. But I still feel sad and a sense of loss when we drive by an area affected by fire. And while I try to be practical and accept the science, I find a bit of my soul is crying.