Hope the summer hiking has been splendid for all.
Two weekends ago, Ash and I decided that we needed to recover from our cabin fever and opted to head up to Sequoia. Didn't really have any plan and just opted to see what was available at the ranger station at Grant Grove. Since I didn't want to drive through the morning, we went for an airbnb in Tulare...must say I generally have had good luck with airbnb but this past one...well ...yea we left pretty early and ended up just driving up to Grant Grove at 2am.
Haven't really done FCFS at Sequoia so I was expecting lines like at TM or the Valley for permits. However, ended up being the only there at opening and ended up getting permits for Redwood Canyon. Also must say the Grant Grove restaurant looked pretty nice!
We got on the trail around 9am and decided to do the harts section of the loop first then exit via the sugarbowl loop. Weather was pretty nice, just a little humid but no bugs.
Got up to the Log Cabin pretty quickly. Neat little housing
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2 by kevin do, on FlickrAfter a few more miles, we finally ran into the first Sequoias on trail
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6 by kevin do, on FlickrThis was also a pretty neat walk thru! Ash was luckily short enough that she could walk through it with no problems. I whacked my head a few times...
7 by kevin do, on FlickrFurther down the trail, we ran into the Hart tree...The picture doesn't really show it but what is up with people defacing trail signs....
8 by kevin do, on FlickrFire damage on Hart's tree was pretty neat
9 by kevin do, on FlickrJust a little bit further was also a nice small waterfall. The last time I was here, the waterfall was still flowing but I can't recall the surrounding area being this green! While small, I really like this waterfall! With the Sequoia sticking out on the right side, it sort of reminds me of the trails at Redwood NP (one of my favorite places to go!)
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11 by kevin do, on FlickrJust some more nice burnt sequoias
12 by kevin do, on FlickrCreek crossings made easy
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14 by kevin do, on FlickrEventually we ran into a super friendly family of 4 down by the Hart/Sugarbowl loop junction. They were kind of enough to lead us to an excellent sandy campsite not too far from the creek that had a few sequoias around. Since we didn't plan to get to camp so early (it was 12pm), we decided to set up the tent and hiked a little bit further down to Big Springs. The further south you went, the drier it got so I can't say it was memorable or worth it. Went back to camp and took a nice relaxing "ice" bath in the creek.
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16 by kevin do, on FlickrWith quite some time to spare, we decided to nap till dinner :tentsleeping:. Nothing better than having the sound of rushing creek and some sequoias around!
17 by kevin do, on FlickrThe next day, we went up the Sugarbowl trail and ran into that generous family of 4 again as they were packing up. Though they had a blast throughout the day, their campsite regrettably was skeeter heaven
. Considering Ash and I only had about 3 bug bites total, that's not too bad at all considering we spent quite a few hours sun tanning the previous day.Going up Sugarbowl, it was a mixture of hot, dry, and a few snakes here and there. Trail was mildly "overgrown" in some parts. Wasn't the most memorable part of the trip and was very glad to finally reach the Sequoia grove at the top. If I were to do this trip again, I probably would avoid this part of the trail and do Upper half of Sugarbowl as a dayhike.
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18 by kevin do, on FlickrEnded up exiting the trail int he next hour or so and went to Grant Grove to get some pizza and our traditional gallon bottle of overpriced OJ. A shabby way to close out the trip :feedme:
