Giant Forest Wander

1 June 2022
Crescent Meadow to Eagle View to Moro Rock to Giant Forest Museum
(5 miles, +700/-1,000 feet).

Today I drove up to Sequoia National Park to get a permit for a trip I’m doing tomorrow with MixMaster and ChiaGlyph. We haven’t hiked together since before the pandemic so I am really looking forward to getting back out with them!

It was pretty easy to get a permit for the Lakes Trail mid-week and the ranger was extremely friendly. At the end of her leave-no-trace spiel, she added “and generally, just no grief.” So when I signed the permit, I added in big block letters “NO GRIEF!”

She laughed.

After that I did a nice day hike in the southern part of the Giant Forest. I took the shuttle to Crescent Meadow and hiked up the High Sierra Trail to Eagle View. The Sequoias were as spectacular as they always are, and it’s a great time for wildflowers.

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Howdy Sequoia!
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Torrey’s Blue-eyed Mary
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Pine Violet
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Sticky Currant
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Whiskerbush
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Western Wallflower
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Cardinal Catchfly
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Skunky Monkeyflower
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Sticky Cinquefoil
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Harlequin Lupine
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Death Valley Phacelia
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And some more!
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Castle Rocks from Eagle View
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The Great Western Divide

From there I turned west and headed towards Moro Rock.

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Mountain Misery
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Moro Rock
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Hillside woodland star
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Log Meadow
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Crescent Meadow
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Northern Indian Parsnip
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Threetooth Horkelia
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One-seeded Pussypaws

The big KNP Complex Fire came through here last year, and today it was interesting to see how some trees survived while others did not.

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A lucky one
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Cardinal Catchfly – wow!
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Crescent Creek
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Pink-flowered Stickseed
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Burn zone
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Silverleaf phacelia
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Bluehead Gilia
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Pacific Dogwood
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Mountain Pride
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Obligatory selfie from the top of Moro Rock
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Burn zone northeast of Moro Rock
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‘Tis but a scratch!
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But those guys didn’t make it

It seemed like the larger trees all survived except those that were undermined by the effect of the intense heat on the soil.

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It cracked in half!

From Moro Rock I circled back to the Giant Forest Museum and then headed over to the Lodgepole Campground to a walk-in site right by the Marble Fork Kaweah River.

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View from my campsite

It was actually one of the nicest spots I’ve ever car-camped in, in no small part because people in the surrounding sites were quite polite!

I’m really looking forward to tomorrow!

2 Comments Add yours

  1. saminland says:

    The Lakes Trail will be beautiful this time of year with snow on tbasins above Pear and Emerald lakes still holding on i wager. Make sure to wander the Tablelands further up the Marble Fork. It is a beautiful area up there – enjoy !

    Liked by 1 person

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