Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks have over 800 miles of trails, including plenty within easy reach of a paved road and suitable for a variety of dayhikes, though much of the Sierra Nevada backcountry is only accessible via longer trails on overnight trips. Many of the routes intersect so combination walks are possible, for either longer or shorter journeys. Below is a listing of all the major trails.
|
Trail |
Length
(one way)
(miles) |
Elevation Change (feet) |
Trail Description |
Foothills - lower elevation area around the southern park entrance, on CA 198
|
| Marble Falls Trail |
3.5 |
1,900 |
The moderately steep Marble Falls Trail begins at Potwisha campground, 4 miles after the Sequoia National Park entrance station on CA 198, and follows Marble Canyon upstream to its falls, actually a sequence of cascades in quite a narrow canyon. |
| Middle Fork Trail |
7.0 |
1,000 |
From Buckeye Flat Campground, reached by a side road 6.5 miles into the park along CA 198, a long trail heads east along the deep canyon of the Middle Fork of the Kaweah River - always on the north side, and a hundred or more feet above the water because of the steepness of the cliffs that enclose the river. The path crosses several tributary streams and climbs steadily up the side of the canyon, through grassy, bushy land, entering pine forest after a walk of 15 miles or so. The suggested target for a day hike is Panther Creek after 7 miles. |
Giant Forest - central region of the national park, with the best sequoia groves
|
| Big Trees |
1.2 (loop) |
60 |
The Big Trees Trail starts next to Giant Forest Museum and winds around the edge of a large grassy clearing (Round Meadow), filled with countless wildflowers in spring and summer. The path is paved, wheelchair accessible and has trailside exhibits. |
| Congress Trail |
2 (loop) |
200 |
Starting at the famous General Sherman tree, this easy, paved path loops through other large sequoias with many bearing governmental names including the Senate and House groups, the President tree (240 feet tall), General Lee tree and McKinley tree. The path offers one of the best introductions to the scenery of the forest, but is apt to be quite busy. |
| Crescent Meadow |
1.8 (loop) |
190 |
The path to Crescent Meadow loops around the green, grassy clearing of the meadow and on to the nearby Log Meadow; a good place to see both large sequoia trees and wildflowers. The parking area is at the end of the 3 mile road that leaves the main park drive near Giant Forest Museum and also passes close to Moro Rock and Tunnel Log. |
| Hazelwood Nature Trail |
1.0 (loop) |
50 |
Hazelwood is an easy path with various trailside information notices about the sequoia trees, and man's impact on them. The trailhead is located next to Giant Forest Lodge. |
| High Sierra Trail |
49.0
4.0 (day) |
|
This is one of the main trans-Sierra backpacking trails - it leads to remote Kern Canyon then intersects the John Muir Trail and on to the summit of Mt Whitney - but the first few miles are good for a day hike. Parking area is at Crescent Meadow, 3 miles from Giant Forest Village. As well as the large trees, the first few miles of the hike reaches various viewpoints, meadows, and Panther Creek, which has cascades and a waterfall. |
| Huckleberry Trail |
4.0 (loop) |
400 |
The first part of this route is along the Hazelwood Nature Trail, from which a continuation path branches off, leading through meadows and sequoia woodland, and also passing an old log cabin built around 1880 (after 1.5 miles), and the Washington Tree which used to be the second largest in Sequoia National Park but partially collapsed in January 2005 following a fire. |
| Moro Rock and Soldiers Loop Trail |
5.0 |
300 |
This path links Giant Village with Moro Rock; most of the trip is through a dense sequoia forest, filled with moss and ferns as well as the big trees, while the very last section climbs up the exposed face of Moro Rock to a fabulous viewpoint of mountains and valleys to the east. |
| Trail of the Sequoias |
9.0 |
1,200 |
With a trailhead at the parking area for the General Sherman tree, this is a loop route that uses parts of the Alta and Congress Trails. First point of interest is the Chief Sequoyah Tree, then the path climbs steadily through forested land to a ridge at 7,300 feet, over more level ground with several stream crossings to Log Meadow, Crescent Meadow and Circle Meadow, returning past the House group of sequoias at the end of the Congress Trail. |
Lodgepole Visitor Center - offers the closest access to the backcountry of Sequoia National Park
|
| Alta Peak |
13.8 |
4,300 |
A steep, strenuous climb, but still quite possible as a dayhike, this is a route to one of the most accessible west-side high summits of the Sierra Nevada range. The trail begins at the Wolverton Creek camping/picnic area, reached by a side road branching off the Generals Highway a little way south of Lodgepole Visitor Center. |
| Lakes Trail |
6.5 |
2,400 |
From Wolverton Creek, at the end of a spur rood south of Lodgepole Visitor Center, this trail climbs steadily up the mountain slopes and passes close to four glacial lakes - Heather, Aster, Emerald and Pear. The trail ends just north of 11,204 foot Alta Peak, though still nearly 2,000 feet below.
Lakes Trail - full description |
| Little Baldy Trail |
1.7 |
700 |
A relatively easy climb to one of the many rounded granite summits of Sequoia National Park: 8,044 foot Little Baldy, which overlooks the park road as well as many square miles of the surrounding forest. Start point is beside the main road (the Generals Highway), 11 miles north of Giant Forest village. |
| Tokopah Falls |
1.7 |
560 |
A pleasant trail alongside the Marble Fork of the Kaweah River, this leads to the 1,200 foot Tokopah Falls - not a single drop, rather a sequence of cascades down a granite hillside, but still very dramatic. Trailhead is at the Lodgepole Campground, 4.5 miles north of Giant Forest Village. Like all Sierra Nevada waterfalls, this is most impressive in spring, during the snowmelt season. |
| Twin Lakes |
7.0 |
2,600 |
From the Lodgepole campground, this path climbs quite steeply up above Stillman Creek, over a ridge to Clover Creek and on to twin glacial lakes at 9,419 feet. After here is a steeper ascent to Stillman pass, at the top of the Kaweah Divide, and a continuation trail on the far side, linking with other backcountry routes in Sugarloaf Valley. |
Mineral King - start of many of the longer hikes in Sequoia National Park
|
| Atwell-Hockett Trail |
10.0 |
1,950 |
Starting point for this hike is Atwell Mill, about 4/5 along the Mineral King road. Unlike others in the vicinity, this doesn't climb particularly high, instead crossing foothills around the East Fork of the Kaweah River, Deer Creek, Clover Creek and later Whitman Creek, ending at Hockett Meadows, which has a ranger station. Other trails lead further south from the meadows, eventually leaving the national park. |
| Eagle Lake |
3.4 |
2,150 |
Starting at the far end of the Mineral King road, this trail climbs diagonally up the side of Kaweah River valley, then alongside Eagle Creek to Eagle Lake, in a sheltered alcove at 10,010 feet. Another branch of the trail leads to Mosquito Lakes, a group of four smaller glacial lakes on the far side of Miners Ridge. |
| Farewell Gap/Franklin Pass |
5.0/6.5 |
2,780/
3,900 |
From the Eagle/Mosquito trailhead at the end of the road to Mineral King, this trail starts off mostly level, following beside the Kaweah River for 2 miles. Then it starts to climb steeply, soon after the river is joined by Franklin Creek from the north, and after ascending about 1,500 feet, the trail splits; the branch straight on, continuing south, leads to a pass at 10,586 feet (Farewell Gap), on the national park boundary, then beyond the path descends towards the Little Kern River valley in the Sequoia National Forest. The main trail is to the left (east) - round to the far side of Tulare Peak, past the twin Franklin Lakes to 11,800 foot Franklin Pass. This is a good target for a day hike though as usual with hikes in this area, the path continues much further, towards Kern Valley. |
| Monarch Lakes/Crystal Lake |
4.2/4.9 |
3,150/
3,550 |
This trail switchbacks up the west side of Mineral Peak, through woodland and meadows, and reaches a junction at 10,028 feet. The south fork passes the long abandoned Chihuahua Mine and ends at Crystal Lake, situated in a bowl-shaped valley. The main trail soon passes the two Monarch Lakes and continues beyond by climbing more steeply to 11,670 foot Sawtooth Pass from where a long route continues east towards Kern Canyon. |
| Tar Gap Trail |
12.0 |
1,100 |
Like the Atwell-Hockett Trail, this crosses more gentle terrain, linking Cold Springs campground with Hockett Meadows, across mountain slopes with many crossings of streams and meadows. |
| Timber Gap Trail |
6.0 |
1,600 |
The Timber Gap Trail is one of several that begins from the Sawtooth trailhead, at the far end of the road to Mineral King. It climbs over a thousand feet up the mostly treeless slopes of Empire Mountain to a low pass at 9,511 feet, then follows Timber Gap Creek down to its junction with Cliff Creek, which at 6 miles, is a good target for a day hike, though other trails continue both directions along this creek, leading upstream to the Little Five Lakes region and the High Sierra Trail, and downstream to Redwood Meadow and the Middle Fork of the Kaweah River. |
