Kings Canyon National Park
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Kings Canyon National Park is a national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of Fresno, California. The park was established in 1940 and covers 461,901 acres (1,869.25 km²).
The park is adjacent to Sequoia National Park; the two are administered by the National Park Service as one unit, Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.
The main geographical feature of the park is Kings Canyon, a 4000 feet (1.2 km) deep canyon carved by glaciers and the Kings River out of granite. Visitors can drive partway to the end of Kings Canyon: the road stops at Cedar Grove.
The other major attraction is the park's Giant Sequoia groves. The park includes the Redwood Mountain Grove, which covers 3100 acres (1250 hectares) and has 15,800 sequoia trees over one foot (0.30 m) in diameter at their bases. This is the largest sequoia grove remaining in the world.
The park is also home to Grant Grove, which includes General Grant tree among other sequoias. That grove is connected by the park's Generals Highway to another sequoia grove, Giant Forest, which is in Sequoia National Park.
Most of the area of the park is backcountry wilderness, which is only accessible on foot or on horseback. The Sierra crest in the park reaches an elevation of 14,000 feet (4,300 m).
See also: Biology of the Sierra Nevada
External links and references
- Panoramic photos of North Kings Canyon NP (http://www.virtualparks.org/parks/kingscanyon1-qtvr-map.html)
- Panoramic photos of South Kings Canyon NP (http://www.virtualparks.org/parks/kingscanyon2-qtvr-map.html)
- Photographic virtual tour of Kings Canyon National Park. (http://www.Untraveledroad.com/USA/Parks/Kings.htm)