Day 5 was getaway day. Originally, I planned to return home. After realizing that I would be fighting the Bay Area Friday evening rush hourto return home, I made arrangements to stay in Fresno Friday night and return home on Saturday. So, after packing and seeing that a ranger walk at the Grant Grove was scheduled in 5 minutes, I headed dwon the road and arrived 3 minutes later. The talk walk provided a final chance to hear about the role of the Sequoia in the founding of the national park system (3 of 4 original national parks involved the preservation of Sequoia groves) and a re-emphasis on the role of all natural elements, including fire in sustaining a healthful environment for the forest. Pictures.
After the walk, I went to far end of the parking area to the trailhead for the North Grove loop, a hike around a grove at the northwest corner of the park This hike provided an opportunity to hike thfough the border area between a living grove and one that had been thinned in the 2015 Rough Fire. Pictures.
For the final hike of the trip, I parked at the Big Stump entrance station to hike 2 sections of the Big Stump trail. The trail was a loop trail, but the end eastern portion (nearest to the Grant Grove) was temporarily closed and being used as a staging area for controlled burns to help maintain a healthy forest. The Big Stump area was added to the park in 1958, having been logged over in the 19th century with even a swmill at its center. Sights on the hike included , the Sawed Tree (with a visible sawcut through the trunk), the Mark Twain Stumps, and other smaller stumps around the meadow that was the sawmill site. Pictures.
From the Bing Stump entrance, it took a bit over 1 hour to reach Fresno. After cleaning up, I headed over to the Apple Store in the local mall to upload the 700 or so photos residing on my iPhone. After about 30 minutes, the job was done, and, after dinner and a good night’s sleep, it was time to head home.