Between Kings River and the Kaweah, we enter the colossal forests of the main continuous portion of the sequoia belt. - John Muir, 1876The Big Trees Trail is a 0.8 mile paved loop trail around Round Meadow in the Giant Forest section of Sequoia National Park. During the summer, a shuttle service runs from the Giant Forest Museum to the trail head. The shuttle was not running during our March 2018 visit to the park, so we were able to park at the trail head.
Sequoia Trees need moist soil, but not too moist. Little Deer Creek meanders through the meadow with the big trees growing some distance from the creek. From the 1920s until the late 1990s, this had been the site of Giant Forest Lodge and cabins. Dozens of buildings were scattered among the trees and a parking area covered a portion of the meadow. Remediation work has improved the habitat for the giant sequoias.
The trail is paved or slightly raised on a boardwalk. When we visited, the trail was covered with snow so we followed the path already packed down by previous visitors. Since the trail is a loop, you can hike it in either direction. We chose to hike around the meadow in a clockwise direction. We wore our MICROspikes® traction devices over our boots and didn't have any issues due to the packed snow. The trail is rated as easy and provides numerous picturesque views of the giant sequoias. I'd recommend this trail to anyone.
Topographic map with GPS route |
Little Deer Creek |
A mature sequoia towers over the forest |
Spiral bark flutes |
Recycling bins near the trailhead are nearly buried in snow |
Two trunks, one tree |
A fallen tree produces a clearing |
Sequoias along the edge of Round Meadow |
Looking across the meadow where nearly 100 buildings once stood |
The conical crown typical of a younger sequoia |
Note the two people between these two sequoias |
Base of a fire damaged sequoia |
Top of the same fire damaged sequoia |
Park bench and a bit of trail pavement |
Frozen pond in the meadow |
These young sequoias might be too close to the creek to survive long term |
Boardwalk along a small grove of sequoias |
Looking back at the small grove |
The old road bed is still visible |
Images can't convey the scale of these giants |
Another small grove |
Typical trail conditions |
Round Meadow |
Fallen sequoia at the footbridge over Little Deer Creek |
Even the rocks are big in the Giant Forest |
Foliage of a still growing sequoia |
Boardwalk skirts the boulders |
Snow on the side of a sequoia |
Looking back at the boardwalk |
Looking inside a fallen sequoia |
Big trees in the sunshine |
One final view |
Entrance to Sequoia and/or Kings Canyon National Parks requires an entry fee of $30 per passenger vehicle for a 7-day pass. Any of the America the Beautiful passes may be used instead.
The park website is https://www.nps.gov/seki.
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