A couple of tourists walking under a fallen redwood in Redwood National Park.

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Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks

The twin parks of Sequoia and Kings Canyon dazzle with superlatives, though they’re often overshadowed by Yosemite, their smaller neighbor to the north (a three-hour drive away). With towering forests of giant sequoias containing some of the largest trees in the world and the mighty Kings River careening through the depths of Kings Canyon (one of the deepest chasms in the country), the parks are lesser-visited jewels where it’s easier to find quiet and solitude. Throw in opportunities for caving, rock climbing and backcountry hiking through granite-carved Sierra landscapes as well as backdoor access to 14,494ft Mt Whitney – the tallest peak in the lower 48 states – and you have all the ingredients for two of the best parks in the country.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Eagle View

    Eagle View

    Sequoia National Park

    Jaw-dropping spectacular view of the Sierra Mountains. It's reasonably easily accessible via a 1-mile walk along the High Sierra Trail from Crescent…

  • 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…

  • Converse Basin Grove

    Converse Basin Grove

    Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks

    Tragically, Converse Basin once contained the world’s largest grove of mature sequoias, but it’s now an unsettling cemetery for tree stumps. In the late…

  • 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…

  • General Grant Grove

    General Grant Grove

    Kings Canyon National Park

    This sequoia grove off Generals Hwy is astounding. The paved half-mile General Grant Tree Trail is an interpretive walk that visits a number of mature…

  • 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…

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Go Beyond

Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks and beyond

Beyond Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks
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