Sequoia National Park

We drove from the east side of the Sierra Nevada (Lone Pine) to the west side, where Sequoia NP is. As the crow flies, it is something like 100 km. But there are no roads over the mountains, so we had to drive 5 hours to get around them.

We drove through an agricultural region where we saw more olive trees than in Tuscany. But all untrimmed:

The campsite was hard to find, it was really in the middle of nowhere. When we were almost there, we saw something on the road. My first thought was a toad, but it was so dry that this was almost impossible. Then we realized it was a spider, a big one!

I threw my camera cap besides it, because it was the first thing I could think of as a reference for the picture. But the spider decided it was hers now, so I had to politely ask it back.

We camped in bear area, on a small campsite miles away from everything. The camp host explained all safety rules and told us bears are seen rarely there. But still we felt safer close together:

We followed American tradition and made the best s'mores ever:

In Sequoia NP are the biggest trees on earth. They are not the highest (the coastal redwoods are), and not the widest in diameter, but the biggest in trunk volume. And they are amazing! Since I heard about them, I wanted to see them and now I was finally able to.

It takes a while before you realize how big they really are. All other tree species around it, are also much bigger and taller than the average tree in your garden (and especially in the poor soil place where I grew up!). And because the tree looks rather slender, you need a reference to comprehend the real size of it. Jan is the little blue spot at the bottom of the tree:

The cobblestone figure here is as big as the base of that tree:

We walked through the immense forest, here are some pictures:

And here is a baby. The kids are wishing him a good life (he has some thousand years ahead of him):

Also in the neighborhood of our campsite was a historic grinding spot. It was so remote that there was no hiking path, no explanation or visitor center. Our camp host told us where we could find it.  History came alive: