Folks, we are officially headed toward the East Coast, and our first stop on our expedition back was Sequoia National Park.
All I really knew ahead of time was the massive sequoia trees the park got its name for, other than that I knew nothing. I certainly didn’t know about the stunning (and kind of scary) 45-minute drive up the mountain once you entered the park to reach the forest.
I also didn’t know the secret this park doesn’t want you to know about, a secret that could ruin the foundation this park was built on.
World’s largest tree or world’s largest lie?
I don’t want to get canceled for this, but the PR campaign for the General Sherman tree is truly the best. This tree is stated as the largest tree in the world, and I just assumed that meant the tallest.
While this tree is absolutely massive, I felt like there just had to be taller trees in the world, and what I found out shook me to my core. After a quick Google search, it is not the tallest in the world, or even in its own state.
We have been bamboozled by Big Sequoia to believe just how big this tree really is.
Let the record show that I love this tree and I think it is a must-see, but in my brain, saying it’s the largest tree means it’s the tallest. General Sherman is over 100 feet shorter than the world’s tallest tree (THIS TREE IS ALSO IN CALIFORNIA).
I understand that the width of General Sherman gives it the title, but I think the word largest is a tad bit misleading. Maybe “world’s girthiest tree” or “tree with the largest volume” would be a better title.
But alas, the PR campaign for this tree is so well done, and I applaud how they convinced me this was the biggest tree standing today.
With all that being said, the aura of this behemoth cannot be put into words, and if you are ever in the area, I highly suggest a visit to the park. The history of the park is fascinating and the age of the towering sequoias is something I’ll never be able to wrap my head around.
Tinfoil hat time
I would not be doing my job as a big J journalist if I didn’t get to the bottom of this.
So here are the reasons I think this myth (my dumb brain not understanding the word largest) has been peddled around.
- They think we are dumb and don’t understand the difference between the largest and tallest (me).
- They want to prove they are better than the interstate rival Redwoods (this feels like a sharks and jets situation, and I want more of a tree rivalry in my life).
- They get free PR from the millions of people who read all of my blogs and want to visit this park now.
Real thoughts on the park
I would honestly recommend this park just for that drive alone (unless you are my dad, that drive would freak him out too much).
This picture doesn’t do it justice, but there is a MASSIVE cliff on the other side of the grass.
But in all honesty, the park is gorgeous and the scenery of it just cannot be beat.
I have already seen the largest buffalo statue (and its subsequent nutsack) in the world on this trip, and it was time to add the world’s largest tree to the list.
Finally off the grid
The only spot in the park with any cell service is at a tiny stretch of the road for about 20 seconds, so I was off the grid most of the day, and it was honestly so refreshing (maybe not for my parents though)
During the year, I am constantly on edge in case any news breaks on the Sabres or for my school (I was the editor-in-chief of our student-run media). So to have several hours where my only option is to unplug was so good for my brain.
I arrived at the park too late for the first-come-first-serve campsites, but that wasn’t really an issue at all. I got to tour the park a bit and go on a few hikes before it started to get dark. There was a very lovely rest stop I ended my day at, under the beautiful California night sky.
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