Sequoia National Park

Using the panoramic feature.

Moro's Rock

The view from the top.

Saturday, July 16th.

From the ridiculous to the sublime. From yesterday to today: from 190 ft below sea level to 7000 ft above;  from 110 F to 80 F;  from little or no vegetation to 300 ft trees… I left Gena’s Sierra Motel at 7 and rode 75km up into the Sierra Nevada Mountains on a wonderfully twisting scenic road. I rode through the Sequoia National Forest to the entrance to both Sequoia National Park and King’s Canyon National Park. I found a parking place in Sequoia NP and left my bike there. I used the free shuttle buses to get around the park. First I went to the Lodgepole Market and bought a few snacks. Then I went for a nature walk called the Congress. It was about a two mile walk through the area called Giant Trees. Along the walk was the “General Sherman’ Tree which is the world’s largest tree, measured by volume. It stands 275 feet tall and is over 36 ft in diameter at the base. There are taller trees but Sherman is the largest by volume. There were other huge named and unnamed trees, some growing in clusters, others singly. Sequoias can live 3000 years and are resistant to fire and insects and disease. But the interesting thing is that fire can kill them, especially when they are young, but they need fire to regenerate. Fire releases their seeds and they grow the best in burnt forest clearings. Young trees grow rapidly into straight spires racing up for the sun. The tops of mature trees die and they grow in girth with massive trunks. Redwoods and Sequoias are different species. Redwoods grow on the coast and can be taller but generally thinner, whereas sequoias grow at elevations of 5000 to 7000 ft and are much thicker.  I meandered through the trees enjoying the solitude and majesty of these largest of all living things. As in any old growth forest there were numerous fallen trees on the ground and it is that way that you can really judge their immense size. I used my phone’s panoramic feature to get photos of their total size, as a regular camera cannot capture the whole tree except from a distance. Later in the afternoon, I took the shuttle to Moro’s Rock. This is about a ½ mile walk but includes over 350 stairs up to the top of a huge dome shaped granite formation. The climb was hard, especially at 7000ft but the views from the top were incredible. After that I shuttled back to my bike and retraced my route back down the mountains to Gena’s Restaurant where I had a salmon dinner, as I had not had a proper meal yet. I thought about staying there again but it was only 6 and there wasn’t anything to do there, so I decided to get a start on my ride back home and  rode two hours north to Merced further up the San Joaquin Valley. It was late in the day and the temperature on the valley floor had dipped to 90. I booked a room and settled in ready for an early morning ride to beat the heat. I rode 298 kms today.