The California Most Don't Know

The view from Kings Canyon Scenic Highway is amazing.

I live in Southern California and wasn't familiar with this region. Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Park is in the core of a multitude of wilderness areas and at least three national forests. This view is from an area just north of the westernmost portion of the National Park, located within Giant Sequoia National Monument and Sequoia National Forest, overlooking the Monarch Wilderness and the Monarch Divide, which crosses back into the National Park.

On this particular day we only had a couple of hours to explore, so we drove to the end of the byway, reached the permit station and turned around. We will definitely come back to this region once the weather cools a bit.

For those who think California is just LA, San Francisco and beaches, take a moment and research Yosemite, Kings Canyon and see that there is more here than you imagined there to be...including the highest peak in the continental U.S. (Mt Whitney), located on the eastern edge of the Sequoia section of this dual National Park.

Grizzly Falls

In between the Grant Grove and Cedar Grove of Kings Canyon National Park, the Kings Canyon Scenic Byway wends its way through the Sequoia National Forest / Giant Sequoia National Monument.

Grizzly Falls (pictured here) is along the byway just prior to re-entering the National Park at Cedar Grove. Earlier in the Spring, when the snow melt is driving Grizzly Creek, the entire rock face is bscured by water flow. However, by the 1st of July (when this image was taken) the flow is considerably smaller and allows for picture taking and people frolicking in the plunge pool at the base.

On this day, the spray from the waterfall felt great as the temperatures were over 100° F, and the canyons through the Sierra Nevadas were hot. I look forward to returning to these parks soon, as the cooler Fall temperatures will make hiking much more enjoyable.

Improvise, Adapt, Overcome

We traveled to Sequoia National Park in winter. It's a challenging time to visit this location, even when there isn't a federal government shutdown reducing the staff to only the essential rangers required for safety.

Unfortunately, though near the entrance the skies were relatively clear, and the temperatures were in the 50s, the conditions at elevation were thick fog with ice covered roads. Worse, many people were taking advantage of the free entry to the park and ignoring the posted signs for snow chains. So, getting to the Sequoia groves proved impossible, and we returned to our hotel, but not before seeing these beautiful gnarled old oak trees near the entrance in the soft warm setting sunlight.

Visit Sequoia National Park; but, be advised, winter travel can be difficult, and give the rangers their due - especially when they are working at skeleton levels with no pay during a government shutdown!

Awakening

The forest is a magical place. In medieval times the forest was the source of firewood and closely managed to ensure consevration. It was also a source of fear with tales of hauntings and trolls and all sorts of mythical creatures.

In recent times, the reliance on wood as an energy source, and even as a building material, has reduced and forest management has become something less critical in the minds of most people. But a darkened forest still stokes the primal fears in the hearts of most people. Uncertainty abounds, unfamiliar noises, and sensations capture the imagination, and the utter darkness of a dense forest will chill even the most hearty souls.

At daybreak on a cold morning - even without a fog - the light reveals a still mysterious scene of sharp angles and coarse textures that offer little comfort to the weary mind...