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Sequoia National Park

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Sequoia National Park, California

©photograph by Quan Yuan/Getty I

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Overview

Picture unzipping your tent flap and crawling out into a ‘front yard’ of trees as high as a 20-story building and as old as the Bible. Brew some coffee as you plan your day of adventures in this extraordinary park with its soul-sustaining forests and gigantic peaks soaring above 12,000ft. Choose to gaze at dagger-sized stalactites in a 10,000-year-old cave, view the largest living tree on earth, climb 350 steps to a granite dome with soaring views of the snow-capped Great Western Divide or drive through a hole in a 2000-year-old log. All that before you've even walked a trail – where the wild scenes (and brief encounters with black bears) will give you goosebumps, charging waterfalls will leave you awestruck and epic overnight backpacking trips will lead you to deserted lakes and idyllic backcountry camps.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Woman hiking through forest, rear view, Mineral King, Sequoia National Park, California, USA

    Mineral King

    Sequoia National Park

    A scenic subalpine valley at 7500ft, Mineral King is Sequoia’s backpacking mecca and a good place to find solitude. Gorgeous and gigantic, its glacially…

  • Man looking up at a giant redwood in Sequoia National Park.

    Giant Forest

    Sequoia National Park

    This 3-sq-mile grove protects the park’s most gargantuan tree specimens. Among them is the world’s biggest, the General Sherman tree, rocketing 275ft into…

  • Moro Rock

    Moro Rock

    Sequoia National Park

    A quarter-mile staircase climbs 350 steps (over 300ft) to the top of Sequoia’s iconic granite dome at an elevation of 6725ft, offering mind-boggling views…

  • Crystal Cave

    Crystal Cave

    Sequoia National Park

    Discovered in 1918 by two parks' employees who were going fishing, this unique cave was carved by an underground river and has marble formations estimated…

  • Crescent Meadow

    Crescent Meadow

    Sequoia National Park

    Said to have been described by John Muir as the ‘gem of the Sierra,’ this lush meadow is buffered by a forest of firs and giant sequoias. High grass and…

  • General Sherman Tree

    General Sherman Tree

    Sequoia National Park

    By volume the largest living tree on earth, the massive General Sherman Tree rockets into the sky and waaay out of the camera frame. Pay your respects to…

  • Hospital Rock

    Hospital Rock

    Sequoia National Park

    The Potwisha people, a band of Monache (also known as Western Mono), originally lived at this site. When the first white settler, Hale Tharp, arrived in…

  • Giant Forest Museum

    Giant Forest Museum

    Sequoia National Park

    For a primer on the intriguing ecology and history of giant sequoias, this pint-sized modern museum will entertain both kids and adults. Hands-on exhibits…

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