Land of Liberty Explorers

Overview

John Muir began advocating for creating a park in Kings Canyon in 1873 when he discovered the similarities between the canyon and Yosemite. In 1890, the park was established as General Grant National Park. In the early 1900s, Los Angeles eyed building hydroelectric dams on the Kings River which triggered more efforts to preserve the area. In 1940, the park was expanded and renamed Kings Canyon. Today the park is administered with neighboring Sequoia National Park.

Grant Grove

Grant Grove features a nice half mile loop trail through a Giant Sequoia grove. The main attraction is the General Grant Tree named for President Ulysses S. Grant. The tree is believed to be about 1,650 years old. It stands 267 feet tall with a circumference of 107 feet around making it the third largest Giant Sequoia behind General Sherman and the President (both in Sequoia National Park’s Giant Forest). President Calvin Coolidge named the General Grant Tree the nation’s Christmas Tree in 1926. In 1965, President Dwight Eisenhower declared it to be a living memorial to Americans who died in combat.

The Grant Grove Loop continues through the sequoia groove. The Fallen Monarch is a fun feature on this trail – it is a giant sequoia that fell many years ago and has since been hallowed out by fire. It was once used as a stable by the U.S. Cavalry, but today park visitors can walk through it as part of the Grant Groove Loop.

Kings Canyon Scenic Byway

After exploring Grant Groove we descended into the canyon on Kings Canyon Scenic Byway. The byway features many overlooks of the canyon, which was filled with smoke from a nearby wildfire during our visit.

Grizzly Falls

Grizzly Falls is an 80 foot waterfall on Kings Canyon Scenic Byway. There is a nice picnic area at this popular stop along the byway.

Roaring River Falls

Back inside the park near the Cedar Grove Visitors Center, a 3.9 mile lollipop shaped trail leads to Roaring Rivers Falls – a powerful 40 foot tall waterfall.