Tuolumne Grove
Exploring Giant Sequoias in Tuolumne Grove
USA
Wanting to see some of the iconic Giant Sequoias, we made our way to Tuolumne Grove which is located in Yosemite National Park. This grove is home to majestic giant sequoia trees that are hundreds of years old.
Once we parked it was about a 1 mile hike down the access road to the Park Ranger guided tour at 11 am. Be sure to check out the times on the park website as the guided walks only run at certain times of the year. We arrived just in time and were able to learn about the history of the area and the anatomy of the Giant Sequoias.
The trail was a gentle slope and the tour lasted about an hour with great information as well as some sobering facts about how 20% of Giant Sequoias in California have been lost in the past 5 years due to the out of control summer wildfires in the region.
Tuolumne Grove is one of the quieter Sequoia Groves and a nice stop to explore these massive trees and their habitat. I recommend visiting during a Ranger walk which were running on Sundays, Mondays, and Tuesdays at 11 am at the time of writing.
Be sure to check the National Park Service website for current times. Happy exploring!
The walk back up was a little more strenuous as you gain back about 400 feet in elevation. Back at the parking lot they have a display showing a cross-section of a Giant Sequoia with markers designating major events it would have lived through. Aliya loved using it as a stage.
After the tour ended, we walked around the trails and two of the highlights were the Fallen Monarch tree with its massive roots, and the Giant Tunnel tree. Apparently you could previously drive down and through the tunnel tree as late as the 1990's!
