Since we couldn’t see very much of the Sequoia and Kings Canyon Natl Parks, we spent one afternoon taking a drive up into the hills around Three Rivers.

We weren’t sure what we’d find, and the map showed the road as mostly dirt and in many places one lane. We mapped out a route that would take us north and then west and then meet up to a state hiway. But, when we tried to turn onto the road we had mapped, we found it blocked and marked private.

So, we continued on the road we were on. It would up into the hills and in many places the hillside was VERY steep and the road VERY narrow!

But it was beautiful! At one point we saw a truck coming the other way and they had pulled over in a wide spot so we could get by. We asked them where the road went and he said it went a few more miles but then dead-ended. He said it would be fine for a 2-wheel drive.

So, we continued on as far as we could go, then we had to turn around (interesting on a narrow dirt road with our long crew cab truck) and head back.

We saw lots of pretty flowers too! Here are some pics:

We had planned to be near the Sequoia Natl Park so we could visit it again – it’s been 10 years! But, the heavy snowfall this past winter resulted in floods which caused such severe damage to the roads that most of the two parks are closed, as shown in the map picture.

One section only was open, at Grants Grove. It was a 2 hour drive to get there but we took a day and loaded Chloe into the truck and headed out. Well worth the drive!! I wasn’t expecting to see very much snow but boy there was a LOT! The visitor center entrance had to be dug out and there was heavy snow all around us once we got into the park.

It was cold too, so thank goodness we had prepared for that with our heavier coats! We walked through the short loop to see the General Grant tree that is the third largest tree in the world based on volume, as well as the Fallen Goliath,, a Sequoia that had fallen in the distant past and could be walked through. Two brothers who lived and worked in the area in the early days actually lived inside the tree!

Chloe enjoyed what we think was her first time in the snow. She climbed right up on a snowbank and sniffed around.

We took a different route home that was on a narrow dirt road for several miles. We passed only one vehicle and luckily it was a wide spot in the road or one of us would have had to back up to a wide spot!

Here are pics: