Sequoia National Park

We last visited Sequoia National Park over ten years ago. It was spring, there was snow on the ground, it was cold, and also quite foggy. We didn't see much back then, but we do remember the sequoia groves and the General Sherman tree.

This visit today, under clear blue sunny skies, revealed all of the park for the dramatic, ancient geological remnant that it is. The park brochure describes Sequoia as a place of superlatives. And indeed this is so. The trees are super giants, the mountains are super tall, the valleys super deep, the range in elevation is super large (from 1,370 feet to 14,494), and the resulting range in climate zones (3 zones) and accompanying vegetation (10 communities) is super broad. 

The road snaked its way through several hairpin bends up the side of the mountain to reach the Giant Forest. The views were breathtaking, the craggy tops of the Sierra range endless.




Once we reached 5,000 feet, we began seeing the sequoia trees. Compared to the trees around them, they were gargantuan.

magnificent towering giants

Situated east of of the San Joaquin Valley, and spanning a large section of the  southern Sierra Nevada mountain range, this park is famous for its giant trees, the Monarch Sequoias. While they are not the tallest tree (the coast redwood) nor the widest (baobab tree) nor the oldest (bristlecone pine), they are the world's most massive tree, by trunk volume, and the largest living organism on Earth. They live up to 2,700 years, reaching a height of over 280 feet and trunk volume of over 52,000 cubic feet.   

It seemed fitting that we visited today, Veteran's Day, and marveled at nature's "veterans" of these mountains. For hundreds of years the survivors withstood fires, endured weather extremes, and finally avoided the saws and axes of the loggers a century ago. They stand honoring those that fell.

It is astounding to consider that the cones of this giant tree are merely the size of a hen's egg, and the seeds are smaller than an oat flake. The survival of any one seedling is dependent on so many factors that it is a miracle that any take root and grow to maturity.

For these trees to grow, conditions need to be just right, like in the Goldilocks story. The 75 existing groves along the western slopes of the Sierras reveal the only spots with optimal growing conditions where the soil remains moist throughout the summer, without getting soggy, between elevations of 5,000 and 7,500 feet. Temperatures above 7,500 feet are too cold, and below 5,000 feet it is too dry. 

I discovered today that mature sequoias and I have a lot in common - we 
top out at a certain height while our girth keeps expanding;) 
(Michael however is the exception)

We saw the famous General Sherman tree.  Standing 275 feet tall, with a trunk volume of 52,500 cubic feet, it is the largest tree on earth. Its base is 32.7 feet in diameter, 103 feet in circumference, and it weighs 1,835 tons. It's simply mind-boggling that anything can grow to this size and age from one tiny seed.

             

Standing 275 feet tall, the entire tree would not fit into my camera window, so I had to take a couple of shots. 

The Tough Twins, a pair of trees that carry obvious fire scars, probably started life at the same time after a fire prepared the ground for them.  It seems counter-intuitive but sequoias depend on fires for their health and survival. Fire creates ideal conditions for seeds to germinate and the seedlings to grow. Heat rising from a fire dries the overhanging cones, causing them to open. Cones then rain down their seeds onto the ash-fertilized ground. 
Fire also opens up holes in the forest canopy for sunlight to reach young seedlings, and it helps eliminate competition from other trees that grow faster, and use water and nutrients from the soil.
The thick, red, tannin-rich bark makes the sequoia fire resistant and if scarred, the bark can heal itself over a period of time. 

fire scar still evident on one of the Tough Twins

The other colossus we saw was the Colonel Young tree, and the the 2,200 year-old Sentinel.

Colonel Young tree

Sentinel tree, age 2,200 years 

So how large is large? To give perspective here is what I learned at the museum:

• one 275-foot tree lying down on a football field would reach from one goal line to the opposite 9-yard line  
• one tree weighing 1,385 tons would take ten blue whales to balance the weight of the trunk alone on a pair of scales
• one tree with a base diameter of 36.5 feet would block 3 lanes of traffic across a freeway 

I was most fascinated by the bases of the trunks, with their "fingers" splayed out as if supporting their massive girth.

amazingly these mammoth trees have a shallow root system, and can survive in less
than 3 feet of soil by spreading their roots up to 300 feet away

One other attraction that showed how large and strong these trees are, is the Auto-Log, a tree that fell beside a roadway in 1917 and was used as a "driveway" for cars to drive over.

Auto-log, base diameter 21 feet

root base of the Auto-log

The trees may be the main focus but the Sierra range and deep valleys are equally impressive. We climbed the narrow stairway up to the top of Moro Rock, which in itself was an adventure.  We were astounded by the views from the 6,275-foot top of this granite dome. 

Moro Rock

The Civilian Conservation Corps built a stairway cut into the rock itself so that people could hike to the top. It was a good work out to climb the 400 steps!

Michael making his way up ahead of me to take a movie

dodging the rocky overhangs along the path up, thankful for the railings protecting
me from the sheer drop off 

at the top of  Moro rock, elevation 6,725 feet

The views were amazing. We could see much of the park, the Sierra peaks for miles in each direction, and the deep glacial valleys below.

snaking roadway below that we drove along 

We also did the short hike to the Hanging Rock.

Hanging Rock, precariously balancing and ready to slide straight down into the valley

The drive back down along the snaking hairpin bends, from an elevation of around 7,000 feet to 843 feet, was equally impressive in the setting sun. 

Moro Rock and Castle Rocks aglow in the setting sun 

The view of the Sierra Mountain Range viewed from these higher elevations was quite dramatic.

Here the view was like looking down at a 3-D relief model

On to Three Rivers

Today was travel day.

Next stop: Three Rivers, California, to stay at the Three Rivers Hideaway campground, which we selected because it is a mere 3 miles from the entrance to Sequoia National Park. 

Our plans: to visit Sequoia National Park and the adjacent Kings Canyon National Park.

Our route: Today we drove south on route 101 from San Juan Bautista to Paso Robles, where we connected to route 46, then continued on route 41 north to 198 east to Three Rivers. 
Ginny (our Good Sam GPS) mapped out a route from route 101 connecting to route 198 all the way to Three Rivers. I took one look at the AAA map to confirm where we were going, noticed that a section of route 198 was a black line with several squiggly sections, and immediately double checked in our trucker's atlas. 
The section of route 198 between route 101 and route 5 was indeed not a designated truck route. Now, it may be that trucks do just fine along this route, but after the hair-raising ride (my interpretation) we had along a similar lesser route last year, I have learned to check with the trucker's atlas first (thank you Willy Egg for sharing that valuable resource with us). So we followed the major red roadways on the AAA map and though it added about 30 minutes to the trip, at least I was a lot more relaxed. Since we are over 50 feet in length with the tow car, and are a heavy load, it is safer to follow the routes designated for trucks.
And as my bus driver has learned, an extra 30 minutes of driving is not a bad idea if his passenger is happy;) After 41 years of wedded bliss, stress avoidance is a better choice! I avoid squiggly routes and he avoids my displeasure.

today's route, in blue (avoided route 198 in yellow)

One thing about this hilly area is that every section of flat area is tamed and cultivated, no matter how small. Traveling southbound along 101, we passed vineyards, green fields growing vegetables, and brown freshly tilled fields. The surrounding landscape looked like a patchwork quilt with small rectangles of greens and browns in several shades. Tractors tilled fields, and workers picked crops. For miles there was industry and activity. 

we whizzed past vineyards

squares of brown and squares of green

fields being watered

As we approached Paso Robles, the terrain became hilly.


More vineyards appeared, as well as green fields, despite the hilly terrain.

neat rows of vines, burnished gold at this time of year

We turned east, where the section between routes 101 and 5 crosses the valley floor. It is a road we have traveled several times now, a sharp contrast to the verdant fields, a section of desert, gold and dry.


We turned east on 198. The route was new, or at least we did not remember it from previous trips over 15 years ago. Agriculture continues here too, as evidenced by the numerous orchards, vineyards, and fields. 

fallow fields with a canal alongside the road

We passed a cotton field.


And we passed a solar farm. California may lack rain, but sunshine is abundant year round.


Even as we were approaching the foothills of the mighty Sierra Nevadas, there were miles and miles of orange and lemon groves. The surrounding landscape resembled a plush green carpet. 

oranges and lemons still growing

We left the valley and began to climb into the foothills of the Sierras. The last couple of miles to our campground took us past the Kaweah Lake Recreation Area, which looked very picturesque. I can imagine that in the summer this must be a pretty popular spot. 

Pinnacles National Park, West Entrance

miles of velvety hill mounds and a valley below

From Yanks RV Resort, it was a short distance to the west entrance of Pinnacles. The drive was quite scenic, first taking us through Soledad, past acres of vineyards, and then into the foothills of the Gabilan Mountains along Route 146. 
It literally felt like we were winding our way between the interlocking velvety hill mounds surrounding us. In several sections, the already narrow two-way winding road became a one-way narrow winding road. Those velvety hill mounds don't leave much room to build anything but a narrow strip of roadway.

We turned another corner and it was a surprise to suddenly face pinnacles appearing out of nowhere, like the scaly ridge on a dragon's back.  The peaks seemed out of place in the gently rolling terrain. But now I understand why they are there.

first glimpse of the pinnacles

this scene appears at the entrance to the park

The visitor center was open, we went in and watched the movie about the origins of these pinnacles. The same types of rocks exist in some low hills 200 miles south of here near Lancaster. Because the type of rock in each location is unique, Geologists were able to put two and two together and figured out that 23 million years ago, a volcanic field developed as the crust of one of earth's plates pushed under another. After erupting explosively for millions of years, the volcanoes went quiet. Motions of the plates along the San Andreas Fault slowly tore the Pinnacles volcanic landscape apart, sending the western part north, while the eastern section, called the Neenach Formation, lies near Lancaster. The highest point of the Pinnacles stands at 3,304 feet. Constant weathering through rain, freezing, and earthquakes continue to erode the volcanic layers.

We continued on to the Chaparral Trailhead to park and access the Balconies Trail. For 1.4 miles, the trail snaked up and around the fascinating cliffs and peaks surrounding us. 
The pictures tell all:

The path back to the car park was either to turn around and return the way we had come, or be brave and continue the remaining .6 miles through a talus cave. By comparison, the talus Bear Gulch Cave we went through on the other side was a walk in the park. After my rock scrambling adventure in Arizona at SARA's slot canyon in Lake Havasu, I vowed to avoid future rock climbing opportunities. Little did I know what lay ahead as we bravely entered the Balconies Cave. 

this warning on the approach is most amusing...
considering that we were surrounded by gigantic rocks and boulders

Michael entering the talus cave up ahead...somewhere among those rocks...

he found the entrance

and in we went....

I took one look at the size of the boulders jumbled on top of each other and prayed they would remain in place just a little longer until we emerged to the other side. After the election results of last night, and the (g)rumblings of the population at the unexpected turn of events, I was concerned there might be repercussions and ground shaking;)

Most of the "cave" was dark and required a flashlight. Thankfully mine was on my head so that I could focus on the path ahead. At one point, it looked like we hit a wall with no way out, but there was a narrow enough slit to squeeze through, followed by more scrambling and trying to find stable footholds in the darkness. There was a "senior" lady hiking on her own and very thankful to arrive at the cave at the same time as we did. Let's just say that she was totally unprepared for the scrambling up and over and between boulders and very grateful that Michael was a 'boy scout', prepared to uphold his oath to help us with a push and shove from below as we pulled ourselves up and over rocks! 

Well, we made it out of the underworld eventually, and were speechless at the size of the boulders hanging above us, perfectly rounded shapes after eons of weathering. I was again very grateful that there were no tremors which would have dislodged any one of the massive hanging boulders. 

we ducked our way around and under boulders like this one

the scale of the boulders was amazing (the lady who was on
the path with us is squeezing her way under the boulder)

the gate leading out of the talus cave is beyond the lowest boulder

Back on the path, we enjoyed more pinnacles in weird formations from a different vantage point.







Closer to the parking lot and picnic area, blue oaks created a pretty avenue.




It was a perfect day among the ancient, rocky remnants of the Neenach Volcano that was split apart by the San Andreas Fault and pushed 200 miles north west. The force of nature, mind-boggling as it is, also created an extraordinary and peaceful playground for us to enjoy.