Drove the 30 odd miles from Vilasia to CA-198 to Sequoia National Park and then another 17 miles up a steep, twisty, windy road to the Giant Forest. This drive was similar to the southern part of the Sequoia National Monument without the residential and commercial influence.
All of a sudden, around 4500 feet, large Ponderosa pines appeared and then immediately, Sequoias. The Ponderosa is a large tree but the Sequoias dwarf them. Stopped off at a nature trail that goes through big stands of Sequoias and around a meadow bordered by them. Many of them were down and standing beside one you get a sense of how big they are. Some of them were 10-12 feet thick, way above my head. A fair amount of snow at this level too.
Then it was off to Moro Rock and the other major attraction of the park, at least for me. 400 concrete steps (courtesy of the CCC?) lead to the top. Moro Rock is basically a bluff looking out over a large valley surrounded by the Great Western Divide and the best snow capped peaks I've encountered to date.
Later I passed under a downed Sequoia with a tunnel cut through it, truck, kayak and all. A sign said 8' clearance and there was still a couple of feet of tree above that.
Then on to see General Sherman. This is a huge Sequoia billed as the largest living thing on earth. 2700 years old, 275 high and 36 feet around. I think they say some things are taller and some things are wider but nothing exceeds its volume. I know redwoods are a lot wider so I guess they're also much shorter if the claim is true.
The drive does continue on into Kings Canyon National Park. I didn't find any camping spots up here and that's always my first priority so I headed out to find a place for the night.