General Travel Planning |
Is there lodging available inside the parks? |
Yes, at one location in Sequoia and in both the Grant Grove and Cedar Grove areas of Kings Canyon. Lodges are also found in the Sequoia National Forest between the two parks. See the Lodging Page. |
Is there camping available inside the parks? |
Yes, at many locations throughout both parks and the national forest. See the Camping Page for lists ordered by park. |
Is there food available inside the parks? |
Yes, again, at many locations throughout both parks and the national forest. All lodging locations have food service, although not all of them operate through the winter months. |
Is there fuel available inside the parks? |
No, not within the national parks. However, it is available at the lodges between the two parks in the national forest. Be prepared to pay a high premium. |
What is the location and hours of the visitor center(s)? |
In Sequoia, there are centers at the Ash Mountain Entrance, the Giant Forest, and Lodgepole. They are open roughly 9AM to 5PM. The Lodgepole Visitor Center is open in summer only. In Kings Canyon, there are visitor centers at Grant Grove and Cedar Grove. They are open similar hours; the Cedar Grove Visitor Center is open only when the entire Kings Canyon Scenic Drive is open. |
What are the visitation seasons in the parks? |
Much of the parks can be visited year-round, including the Giant Forest and Grant Grove. Of course, the large majority of the visitation occurs in the summer months. |
Are the roads open on a year-round basis? |
No. The Generals Highway is generally kept open year-round, although there can often be temporary closures due to snow and ice in winter. The Kings Canyon Scenic Drive beyond Grant Grove is usually closed November through April. |
How much time is needed for a visit? |
Two days minimum, one for the major features of each park. Casual visitors should plan on at least two days for Sequoia and one day for Kings Canyon. Avid hikers will want to plan anywhere from one week to several weeks, depending on whether they plan frontcountry or backcountry hiking. |
Park Features |
What wildlife can be seen in the parks? |
With over 13,000 feet of vertical relief encompassing dozens of life zones, including caves, lakes, forests, streams, meadows, foothills, mountains, and others, it is pointless to even try to list them here. Instead, here is a complete list of vertebrates produced by the National Park Service, in PDF format. |
What plant communities are in the parks? |
The same diversity of elevation mentioned above leads to over 1,200 species of plants making up dozens of plant communities. Obviously, the star of the parks is the giant sequoia. Suffice to say, every major plant community from foothills to alpine tundra is represented in the parks. |
How were the parks created? |
Sequoia and the precursor to Kings Canyon, General Grant National Park, were created in 1890 in response to the wanton destruction of the sequoia groves. They were created on October 1st, along with Yosemite, making them the oldest national parks in the system except for Yellowstone, the world's first national park created in 1872. General Grant was expanded and renamed Kings Canyon National Park in 1940. |
Are sequoias the largest trees on earth? |
The short answer is yes. Although they are not the tallest trees, their great width combined with their great height makes them the largest by volume. The General Sherman Tree, in the Giant Forest, is not only the largest tree on earth but the largest living thing. |
