Though this was the park that inspired the whole trip, it was the place I struggled the most to capture, though I didn't realize it to its full extent until I returned home. To me, this place is exceptional, but it's the kind of place you need to experience to understand fully. I struggled to try and capture what I saw, their size, magnitude, and scale. So I focused on photographing my experience.
We spent the afternoon slowly walking through these giants admiring them in all their beauty. Going off the trail where we would, doing our best to pay respect and not damage their home. Our walk was probably our shortest hike of the trip, but you wouldn't guess that by how long we took. It was a pleasant slowdown. My brother, being a forester in training, told me fact after fact of these trees as he would occasionally measure them with his foresters tape measure.
Since Kings Canyon is so close to Sequoia, I opted to stay at one of the few lodges in the National Forest. This cut way back on driving letting us, for the first time, have a relaxing night. After hanging out next to General Sherman for at least an hour, we made our way to the lodge. We took advantage of our time there, kayaking on the lake, playing basketball, eating a home cooked dinner in the dining room with fellow adventurers, telling stories by the fireside, and ending the night taking astrophotography in the forest. I could have stayed there for a week.
