Big Stump Grove Guide
The first trail you'll pass if you're coming to Kings Canyon National Park from the city of Fresno, the Big Stump Grove is a trip back in time--a time when the logging of giant sequoia trees was still legal. This short and easy trail lets you explore the countless stumps of sequoias cut near the turn of the 20th century, open meadows, one stump you can even climb to the top of, and just a few of the big trees that managed to avoid the axe.
When to Visit
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Late spring and summer bring the heaviest crowds to Kings Canyon, especially in the Grant Grove area, where the Big Stump is located. While it's the first trail most people pass, quite a few actually skip it--probably because they're more interested in seeing sequoias that are still standing. Despite most of the big trees being reduced to stumps, this trail still has fantastic scenery, history, and a lot less crowds.
How to Get There
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Entering through the Big Stump Entrance of Kings Canyon National Park, the parking lot, bathrooms, and beginning of the Big Stump trail will be shortly past the entrance gate on your left. To the left of the bathrooms you'll find a sign marking the trail's beginning. Fresno/Yosemite International Airport is the closest if you plan on flying in, only an hour away.
Big Stump Grove Trail
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Time: 1 - 1.5 hours.
Distance: 1.6 miles.
This trail is a loop that ultimately meets in the parking lot: the choice is yours which way to start it, but for the sake of this guide, we'll begin at the park just to the left of the bathroom building. A sign clearly marks it as the Big Stump Trail. Proceed downwards, and instead of a lifeless stump, you'll see an extremely large sequoia tree! It's one of few living mature sequoias that you'll encounter on this hike.
Start of the Big Stump Trail (above) and one very wide sequoia (below).
Continue on, and the trail leads downwards deeper into the forest. You'll begin to glance giant stumps the further down you get, and eventually there will be some you can walk right up to. If this is your first time seeing sequoias, or in this case, their stumps, you'll be in awe at just how massive these trees are (or in the case of the stumps, were).
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Stumps for days.
Pressing forward, the trail will branch off--but both of these branches are relatively short, and meet up on the other side. One takes you around the Big Stump Meadow, which, like it sounds, is a relatively open meadow that is full of logged sequoia stumps. The other takes you past the remains of a sequoia that was cut down and shattered upon impact, called the Fallen Giant. Both sections are short and worth checking out, though the meadow is off limits to hiking through--stick to the trail that goes around it and still gives you great views.
Big Stump Meadow (above) and the Fallen Giant (below)
Felling a giant sequoia was no easy task for timbermen back in the day, and the trees were so massive they would often shatter upon impact--much like the Fallen Giant. To soften their fall and preserve the wood, loggers would create "feather beds," shallow ditches that would be filled with branches for the falling trees to land on. An example of one still exists, and can be viewed just past Big Stump Meadow.
Tough to spot, but you can find a sequoia's feather bed on this trail.
From the feather bed, follow signs for the Mark Twain Stump, arguably this trail's most popular attraction. Emerging from the forest you once again come upon a meadow, with a single, gigantic stump that just so happens to have a staircase built into it. This is what remains of the Mark Twain Tree, a giant sequoia that was cut down and shipped to the New York Museum of Natural History in 1891. While sections of it can still be viewed in the museum today, visitors to it's stump are free to climb to the top.
The Mark Twain Stump (above) and the Mark Twain Tree as it fell in 1891 (below).
Continue the trail, where it will cross the highway to the other side. Along with more stumps, you'll actually find a handful of mature sequoias over here--their red bark making them stand out. Keep an eye out for one in particular that has a large gash in it: this is the sawed tree, a sequoia that loggers began to cut, but eventually abandoned.
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The trail eventually concludes, putting you back right where you started in the parking lot. You're probably hoping to see some more standing sequoias though, right? Head just up the road to Grant Grove and the General Grant Tree, where you'll find plenty of the big red trees, and noticeably less stumps.
Grant Grove: where the sequoias are a lot more vertical.
Kings Canyon National Park Video Guide
Explore the giant sequoias of Grant Grove, amazing Sierra Nevada views, countless waterfalls, the jaw-dropping Boyden Cavern, and venture deep into the backcountry to the stunning Paradise Valley--all in this video guide to one of America's less-traveled national parks!