Kings Canyon - Fit for Royalty

We arrived at Kings after sundown, partly due to the protests in Fresno, but mostly because we slept in that morning. It was a Saturday Night and the campgrounds were full on arrival. We were tired and didn't see any signs saying otherwise, so we pulled into the Visitor Center parking lot and settled in for the night. The Park Ranger didn't like that...

Sun setting as we reach Kings Canyon National Park after a hot day in Fresno, CA. 

He was quite polite about the whole thing, probably because we were polite back. We drove back out of the park and found a quiet turnout on the side of the road in Sequoia National Forest to stop for the night. In the morning we headed back into the National Park and found a campsite after devouring coffee and giant breakfast sandwiches.

We headed to the famed General Grant Grove where you'll find some extremely large trees. Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks are known for just that, the Giant Sequoias that are now protected here and can grow to immense sizes. We scrambled over, and through, several fallen giants and stood in awe of the strangeness of these trees. They don't actually grow overly tall (as far as trees go), they just get big. Hefty if you will. The trunks of the Giant Sequoias don't taper like most trees do. They stay pretty chunky all the way to the top. It takes a long, LONG time for the trees to mature to this size. We're talking hundreds of years. Their bark is thick (up to 2 feet thick) to protect from fires, their wood repels insects and they grow fast as seedlings and teens to bully out other species.

Playing in the woods at Grants Grove, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Playing in the woods. This giant fell over at some point and is hollow inside allowing you to climb all the way through the tree! Grants Grove, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

A Cave?? Nope the inside of a burnt out Giant Sequoia. This tree fell over at some point and we climbed all the way through!! Kings Canyon National Park, CA

The centerpiece of Grants Grove is, of course, the General Grant Tree. This towering beauty is over 1,650 year's young, over 260 ft tall, almost 29 ft across with a circumference of over 107 ft and a volume of over 46,000 cubic ft and STILL growing! The craziest part is that this isn't even the largest one! The Grant Tree comes in at number two on the world's biggest trees. The title of "biggest" is actually the volume of the tree not the height or the girth at the base, but the shear volume of wood. That's a lot of wood...

And this, is General Grant Tree. The 2nd biggest in the world by volume. Grant's Grove, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

After playing in the woods we headed up to Panoramic Point which offers gorgeous views of the Sierra Nevada, Kings Canyon and the surrounding forests. One of the most noticeable things about this park in comparison to Yosemite was the lack of people. These parks are far less crowded and far less visited than the stunning Yosemite National Park. We had Panoramic Point to ourselves for quite a while, save for a Park Volunteer who answered questions for us and pointed out some of the mountain peaks and best places to visit.

Chillin in the shade at Panoramic Point, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Panorama of Panoramic Point, Kings Canyon National Park, CA.
You may want to click to enlarge this one to get the full effect. 

From there we headed down the intensely twisted road to Kings Canyon. This canyon has a max depth of over 8,200 ft, making it one of the deepest in the US. We went from the top to the bottom and were treated to some jaw-dropping views. We walked out to two waterfalls and pulled over to wander down to the river. The canyon is home to the South and Middle forks of the Kings River which in turn are the head waters for the San Joaquin River. The canyon takes up about 90% of the park and it's easy to see why they added this to the General Grant National Park (est. 1890) in 1940. There are miles and miles of back-country hiking here, as well as a ton of rock climbing, if that's your thing. This part of the park is almost devoid of people all together which is a positive and a negative. It's wonderful to have all this to yourself but it's sad that more people don't get to experience it.

Don't be dumb. The river is actually pretty intense, even at "low" water levels. Don't go swimming here. You'll regret it.
Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Dipping my feet into the icy waters at Grizzly Falls, Kings Canyon, CA

Enjoying the mist from Grizzly Falls, Kings Canyon, CA

There are bountiful campsites down here but after the wild fires last year there are no services in the canyon, as they burned down, so bring enough gas, food and water to get by. Many caves and trails are also closed due to the destruction of what was nick named the "Zombie Fire" because of it's ability to spring back to life when they thought it was dead. It raged and ravaged the State of California and kept over 4,000 fire fighters in and near the park on their toes and all that is left is a stark, yet dramatic, landscape. It will rebound and come back. The Park Volunteer we were speaking with said that this year's spring flowers were the best anyone has ever seen. Young saplings are growing and taking root as there are no large trees to obstruct their sunlight. The forest will return. It may just take a while.

We made it to Roads' End (yes that's what it's called!), Kings Canyon, National Park, CA 

One of the breath taking vista points along the drive through Kings Canyon. You can really see the devastation from the wild fires that tore through her in 2015. This should be lush and green. It is most decidedly not. Kings Canyon National Park, CA

We headed back up the curvy roads and arrived at camp to have some burgers done on the fire. In the morning while Geoff was making coffee, a male dear wandered through our campsite, sniffing chairs and approaching Geoff without much fear. I hope he's smart enough to stay in the National Park where he'll be safe from hunters come fall.

Mr Deer wandering through our campsite while Geoff makes coffee. Kings Canyon National Park, CA

After breaking camp, we headed to the Big Stump Trail. A two mile trek that takes you past some living Giant Sequoias and some of their sacrificed brothers. There are dozens of stumps, the remains of the logging which once took place, to climb over and explore. The largest being the Mark Twain Stump which was not cut down for logging or industrial purposes. It was sacrificed to show the world how large these trees were as many outside California claimed the trees to be a hoax! It took two men 13 days to fell the giant. Slices of the tree were then cut and are now on view in museums in New York and London. It's well over 40 feet across and impossible to capture in a picture. Truly amazing.

Inside one of the burn scars on a Giant Sequoia on the Big Stump Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Geoff atop a giant stump on the Big Stump Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Geoff admiring the burnt out shell of what remains of a glorious Giant Sequoia.
Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Gorgeous sandstone canyon walls? Nope! inside a burnt out Giant Sequoia!
Big Stump Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Geoff Dubbed this Cathedral Stump and I climbed inside for scale.
Kings Canyon National Park, CA

The Mark Twain Stump. This tree must have been massive! Over 40 feet across!
Big Stump Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Getting a photo of the Mark Twain Stump from the ground is impossible! I stood on one side and Geoff is on the other.
Big Stump Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Yet another attempt at a photo of the Mark Twain Stump. Crazy.
Big Stump Tail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

This pic is for my mom. Guess what tree this giant pine cone comes from? NOPE! Wrong!
NOT a Giant Sequoia but a Sugar Pine! This wasn't even the largest out there but it was near the path.
Big Stump Trail, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

We left Kings Canyon happy that we took full advantage of everything there was to see. We picked up our National Parks Passport and started collecting stamps. They were sold out of these in Yosemite so we missed out on that one. Guess we'll have to go back!! But for now, we're on to Sequoia National Park.

The Majestic Van at Grants Grove, Kings Canyon National Park, CA

Till next time - Fair winds my friends!

Marsha (and Geoff)

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