Sequoia National Park

We left Las Vegas the morning of September 17, 2014, and drove to the Sequoia National Park.
This was our reserve day and we thought: or to stay in Las Vegas or to go further.
The road has won...
But we decided not to hurry, and often to stop in the rest areas.

We were driving on the highway 15 in the direction of the city Barstow, CA
Next, we wanted to use the roads 58, 14 and 178 to Lake Isabella.
And then act according to circumstances, depending on the time and our fatigue.

Bye-bye, Las-Vegas...

We drove through the desert and stopped at the Rest Area.
Well, you know why.
GPS-coordinates: 35°26'07.6"N, 115°42'00.1"W

In addition to the ocean, the wife really wanted to see the cacti.
On HWY 15 has a place where they grow alongside the road.

In the city of Barstow at the pass, we stopped at one of my favorite truck stops "Flying J", where we had dinner.
GPS-coordinates: 34°51'12.9"N, 117°04'53.4"W

We really liked the cafe "Denny's" and we often visited them during our trip.
Here is inexpensive and tasty, you can take breakfast, lunch or dinner.

After lunch, we updated our route
We relaxed from the delicious food and from the hot sun, so we decided to not rush to Sequoia National Park, but see the Lake Isabella and spend the night in any city.

Closer to the lake, we saw whole forests of huge cacti.

Some photos on the background of such beauty.

Lake Isabella...

The road goes around the lake, we walked and swam.

After a rest, we drove to the "Motel 6", Porterville, CA, by the road 155.
GPS-coordinates: 36°04'23.3"N, 119°02'15.5"W

The forest of cacti was behind us, the hills were ahead...

The forests were ahead...

The fields were ahead...

Finally, towns and villages.

We spent the night in the "Motel 6" in the town of Porterville, CA and the next morning drove to the Sequoia National Park by the road 198.

We drove through the orchard, with the plantations of tangerines and oranges.

State of California - it's citrus region of USA.
Citrus fruits can not be imported to California to infection is not spread among fruits.
*Agricultural inspection stations*
There is even "customs" at the entrances to California - the agricultural inspection.
The officers are checked trucks and cars.
Of course, you will not be penalized because of one orange or tangerine but you should know the rules.
*Agricultural inspection*

The plantations left behind, the hills covered with forests were ahead

And here is the entrance to the park...
GPS-coordinates: 36°29'26.7"N, 118°49'33.1"W

Sequoia National Park is located in California, in the southern part of the Sierra Nevada.
The park was founded in 1890.
Giant sequoias grow here, including the grove "Giant Forest".
There is a huge granite rock in the park - "Moro Rock".
*Sequoia National Parks*

And here is the "Tunnel Rock" - a huge stone near the road.

You can see the rock far from here - "Moro Rock".
GPS-coordinates: 36°32'48.7"N, 118°45'56.2"W

"Moro Rock" - is a granite monolith in the form of a dome.
The age of the cliff - about 100 million years.
The stone peak - the height of 75 meters, the height of the peak above sea level - 2050 meters.
The western slope of the mountain is almost vertical wall of about 300 meters high.
Let's go...
*Moro Rock*

Tourists go up the stairs, of the length of 243 meters (400 stairs).
The staircase was built in 1931.

You can rest on the small view points, examining the surrounding area.

The tops of the trees were below, the beauty was all around us...

The cliff consists of granite, in some places it has cracked.

The staircase is very narrow, you must yield the right of way for tourists who goes down.
To do this, there are the small points.

One more a rest before storming the top of the cliff...

The top of the cliff!

Oh, how beautifully around!

View Point onthe Top...

And now, let's down.

Going down is not easy, we give way to those who go up.

I really liked the rock "Moro Rock".
It is quiet a wild place, the fallen dead trees complement this picture.

Near the rock, is another attraction of "Tunnel Log".
The road runs among the giant sequoias.

We stopped near the "Buttress Tree", a huge tree that fell in June 1959.

Our next stop was near the group of sequoias "Parker Group".
These trees was found by James Parker, by the captain of the US Army in 1893

Trees of gigantic proportions, and we are ants.

We arrived to the "Tunnel Log".
*Sequoia National Park - Tunnel Log*

The huge sequoia fell across the road in 1937.
The park administration decided to make a tunnel than to cut the tree into pieces.
*Tunnel Log - Wiki*
GPS-coordinates: 36°33'09.2"N, 118°45'41.3"W

The car and my wife feels quite comfortable in this tunnel.

If you think you have already seen the most massive sequoias, you're wrong...
These trees were still ahead.
We were moving to the grove of sequoias where there were five of the ten largest trees in the world by the volume of timber.
And one of these giants - "General Sherman Tree", the biggest tree in the world by the volume of timber.

We dropped the car and went by the road among the sequoias to the giant.

The tourists are in no hurry, they read the signs with the names of trees, they rest on benches.

Gradually, the road became narrow.

And here is a group of huge sequoia.

The trees were huge.

The sequoias near the ground have had immense size ...

And the crowns of the trees covered the sky ...

The pine trees grow near the sequoias seem to be just dwarfs.

We have come to the miracle-tree.

"General Sherman Tree" - is the largest tree in the world by the volume timber.
The tree got its name in 1879 in honor of General William Sherman.
The tree height is 83.8 meters, the volume is estimated at 1487 cubic meters, weight - 1900 tons, and age - in 2300-2700 years.
*General Sherman Tree*
GPS-coordinates: 36°35'05.5"N, 118°44'58.8"W

But, cones in the forest are very big too...

We returned to the car and drove by the roads 198 and 180 to Kings Canyon National Park, to General Grant Grove.
The second tree in the world by the volume of wood - the sequoia "General Grant Tree" grows there.
*Kings Canyon National Park*

The tree got its name in 1867 in honor of General and 18th President of the United States of Ulysses S. Grant.
Its age is estimated to be about 1650 years old.
*General Grant Tree*
GPS-coordinates: 36°44'49.2"N, 118°58'23.4"W

We have seen the giant sequoias in the national parks "Sequoia National Park" and "Kings Canyon National Park".
And now we drive by the roads 180 and 41 (Wawona Rd.), in the direction of the Yosemite National Park.

Near the town of Wawona, CA, on the road 41 (Wawona Road), we had booked a site for the night in Wawona Campground.
It was necessary to rest, to enter of the "Yosemite" the next morning.