John Cletheroe's
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Sequoia National Park, California

Pronunciation

See-coy-ya or See-cwoy-ya.

Location

On the western side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, some way south of Yosemite National Park and immediately south of Kings Canyon National Park.

By car, Sequoia National Park can only be accessed from the west.

Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon National Park are adjacent and administered as one unit. The entrance fee covers both parks.

Size

The size of Sequoia National Park alone, not including Kings Canyon National Park, is 629 square miles. For comparison, the English county of Hertfordshire has an area of 632 square miles.

What to See and Do

Admire the beautiful views, especially from Moro Rock, and of course the giant Sequoia redwood trees. The General Sherman Tree is the largest living object in the world, standing 275 feet tall and with a maximum diameter of over 36 feet.

Cave tours can be taken at Crystal Cave, which lies at the end of a spur road from Giant Forest. This area is only open during the summer. Neither the National Park Service National Parks Pass nor the Golden Eagle Passport cover the cost of cave tours.

In February 2004 Abby Snow, Crystal Cave Manager, Sequoia Natural History Association, very kindly emailed me this latest information about Crystal Cave:

Giant Forest Village doesn't exist anymore. Visitors should purchase tickets for Crystal Cave at the Foothills Visitor Centre or Lodgepole Visitor Centre before driving down the spur road from Giant Forest. The regular tour is 50 minutes long and costs $10. The more in depth Discovery Tour lasts 2 hours and costs $18. The Wild Cave Tour involves crawling and climbing, lasts at least 4 hours, is by reservation only and costs $99. Contact Sequoia Natural History Association for information about Crystal Cave: http://www.sequoiahistory.org or US telephone number (559) 565-3759.

The Sequoia Natural History Association web site (external link verified Feb-04) has information on Sequoia National Park (including tours of Crystal Cave), Kings Canyon National Park and Devils Postpile National Monument.

Sequoia National Park also includes Mount Whitney, at 14,491 feet the highest peak in the United States outside Alaska.

Winter Access

A number of the spur roads in Sequoia National Park are closed throughout the winter.

Some Ideas for Places to Stay

Porterville, California is a pleasant medium sized town with a good range of facilities.

In the Area

Kings Canyon National Park
There are numerous orange orchards in the Porterville area, with stands selling the produce.
Numerous "nodding donkeys" can be seen in the oil (or natural gas?) fields south of the town.

Related Parks

Redwood National Park in northern California, home to the Coastal Redwood trees which grow even higher than the Giant Sequoias.

Related Information

Trees: Tallest, Biggest and Oldest

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As with all the other pages on this personal web site, all the information on this page is solely the opinion of the author, who has no connection whatsoever with any of the companies and organisations mentioned other than as an actual or potential customer.

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Most recently modified 3-May-04