Discover the Dark

{NOTE: Please check ahead on Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks and their upcoming Dark Sky Festival. Closures and cancellations may arise due to the Coffee Pot Fire.}

Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks are legendary as “the Land of the Giants,” home to the largest trees on earth—giant sequoias—and to the deepest canyon in the U.S.—Kings Canyon. The parks also have some impressive dark sky viewings.

Hike beneath the giant sequoias on the Congress Trail near the world-famous General Sherman Tree. Then see “the Nation’s Christmas Tree,” the General Grant Tree (at 268 feet tall and 107 feet around, it’s a tough one to try and decorate!). And take in the dark skies from your campsite or lodging. Inquire at visitor centers for other vantage points where you can safely view the night sky.

Bonus: September 6 – 8, 2024, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks host the Dark Sky Festival — “Discover the Dark.” On September 6 the festival kicks off with a special event in nearby Visalia, where the biopic A Million Miles Away will be featured at the historic FOX Theater. It’s an inspiring story about José M. Hernández, a farm worker from the Central Valley who became a NASA engineer and astronaut. The festival will have plenty of stargazing and events to connect us more deeply to the wonders of the night sky and raise awareness of light pollution and ways to preserve natural darkness.

Tip: There are a few drive-in campgrounds in the park. Lower-elevation ones like Potwisha and Buckeye Flat can get hot. Try to get a spot at Lodgepole’s tent-only sites (we liked riverside sites like 38 – 45, 97 – 101, 121 – 144).

Or get a room at Wuksachi Lodge or John Muir Lodge. Enjoy dinner at the on-site glass-walled restaurant, which combines upscale and rustic décor, a giant fireplace, friendly staff, and earth-friendly food.