Sequoia Photos!!!

We had a fabulous time camping in the Sequoias. It's just beautiful there and the weather was perfect! We camped at Dorst Campground, roughly in the middle of the park. Got a great spot that backed up to a gorgeous meadow, so nobody was camping behind us. The kids are also so excited to set up their sleeping bags in the tent! We stopped at Lost Grove and did a bit of hiking and checking out the Sequoia Trees before we set up camp. We spotted a black bear in the camp the first night. The kids were excited!!


Our first day was spent hiking through the forest, seeing all the touristy sites and looking at lots and lots of huge trees! A trip wouldn't be complete without a drive through tunnel log!

We stopped at Lodgepole to check out the Kaweah River. So beautiful. Can you just see Craig scoping out the best fishing spots?

On the way back from Lodgepole, I...with my eagle eye...spotted this cutie black bear rooting around for grubs. I made Craig stop the car in mid-drive and back up and pull off so I could get some pics!!




Our campground was under mountain lion watch the whole time we were there. The night before we arrived, a mountain lion killed a deer in the campground loop right across from us. Killed it right in the middle of a campsite. Our first night after we went to bed, we heard the dogs from 4 campsites down start barked. And then we heard a very loud snarl. Okay, so the mountain lion was real! The rangers were very very serious when they showed us how to protect our necks and throats if attacked. It made a big impression on my 6 year old!!!

Hume Lake was next for fishing and swimming. We fished over by the dam...and caught jack squat!! A good lesson in patience for the kids. Ha!!

We had lunch and played by the river. Despite the 500 warnings that the rocks were slippery...sure enough Kevin slipped and slid down a bunch of rocks and ended up in a little pool of water. Kinda funny to watch..we tried to play it off like he made his own water slide. He wasn't buying it!

After swimming in the lake, we stopped at a little turn off by the edge of the lake. Craig wanted to try fishing again while the sun was getting low in the sky. And sure enough, we caught some whoppers!! Here is Kevin's first fish!

The next day was a free day. Whatever the kids wanted to do...after taking a shower! We went back to Lodgepole and hiked around the Kaweah River. Craig wanted to try fishing again. We found a nice spot by the river and Craig found a big log that he was sure the fish were hiding under. And we caught a few rainbow trout...not huge but we were excited!



We were also treated to these visitors everynight at the campsite. Some even showed up in the morning. The last night we were there, 5 deer were in the meadow behind us, just snacking away.

We did lots of walking and hiking and the kids did great! We had smores and campfires and stories and loads of fun. We did not want to come home, but such is life. We will definitely be going back!