BY AUTOMOBILE
From San Francisco the motor route to Sequoia National Park is by the Golden State Highway through San Joaquin Valley to Fresno and Visalia. Visalia is the motorists' headquarters for the mountain trip and is a pleasant county seat of about 6,500 people, with excellent hotel and stores. Ash Mountain is 36 miles from Visalia by paved highway via either Lemon Cove or Woodlake. Giant Forest is 17 miles farther by excellent mountain road. The motor journey from Visalia to Giant Forest is easily made in 2 hours.
From Los Angeles the motorist has a choice of highway routes after leaving Bakersfield either via Tulare and Visalia or by Delano, Porterville, and Exeter. There are good accommodations in any of these towns.
Full information relative to the best routes, road conditions, etc., may be obtained from the California State Automobile Association, San Francisco; the National Automobile Club, San Francisco; the Automobile Club of Southern California, Los Angeles; and from branch offices of any automobile club in California. All automobile club offices post the latest bulletins from the superintendent's office.
An automobile license fee of $1 is required except on the Mineral King Road. It is payable at any of the entrance stations. The same license permits entrance to both Sequoia and General Grant National Parks, good for the entire calendar year.
AUTOMOBILE ENTRANCES
The Generals Highway, leading to Giant Forest by way of the Kaweah River, Middle Fork, is the main artery of travel in the park, connecting directly with the paved State highway at the park boundary and reached from all points north and south through the various towns of the San Joaquin Valley. The Generals Highway is a fine surfaced mountain road, wide and of easy grade, leading the visitor past Ash Mountain headquarters, Camps Potwisha and Hospital Rock, to Giant Forest, 17 miles from the entrance, and the heart of the present development among the Big Trees. From Giant Forest it continues on past the Sherman Tree to Lodgepole Camp (4 miles), crosses the Marble Fork, and, winding through mixed fir and pine forests, crossing streams and meadows with many a forest and mountain vista, leaves the park 11 miles farther on at the Lost Grove Ranger Station. For the convenience of motorists, water stations and telephones for emergency use will be found at intervals along the highway through the park. The highway continues on 15 miles farther through scenic country to General Grant National Park, where it connects with the State highway to either Visalia or Fresno. This makes possible a circle trip through both parks, via either the Ash Mountain entrance or the Lost Grove entrance and via either Visalia or Fresno. The Generals Highway is open to Giant Forest, via the Ash Mountain entrance, all year except immediately after unusually severe storms in winter.
The Mineral King Road, leaving the State highway at Hammond, 5 miles above Three Rivers, and following the east fork of the Kaweah River, crosses the central part of the park, passing Atwell station and camp in a forest of Big Trees, and ends at the summer resort of Mineral King, in the national forest and game refuge beyond.
ROAD-SIGN INFORMATION
All signs in the parks are official. It is important and helpful to read them.