This is the easiest world-class trail you will ever walk. A paved, wheelchair-accessible loop winds through the Grant Grove, where ancient sequoias dwarf everything around them — including your sense of scale. Within minutes you are standing at the base of the General Grant Tree, the second-largest living thing on Earth, a trunk so massive that a family of five holding hands cannot wrap halfway around it. The trail passes a fallen monarch you can walk through, a reconstructed log cabin built inside a hollowed-out sequoia, and the Gamlin Cabin from 1872. The whole loop takes most people about twenty minutes, but plan for longer because you will stop constantly. This is the trail for anyone who wants a genuine giant sequoia experience without breaking a sweat — perfect for grandparents, toddlers, and everyone in between.
The paved trail can be icy and slippery from late fall through early spring — Grant Grove sits above 6,500 feet and gets serious snow. Check road conditions before driving up, and wear shoes with grip if there is any frost.
Trail Details
Distance0.5 miles round-trip
Difficultyeasy
Estimated TimeVaries
Trail Typeloop
PetsNot allowed
SeasonYear-round
TrailheadGeneral Grant Tree
Pro Tips
Trail Tip
Arrive before 9 AM in summer to snag a spot in the small Grant Grove parking lot — by mid-morning it overflows and you will be circling like a vulture. Off-season, parking is rarely an issue.
Trail Tip
Walk the loop counterclockwise to hit the General Grant Tree first while your group still has patience, then let kids explore the fallen log and cabin on the back half when they need to burn energy.
Trail Tip
For the best photographs of the Grant Tree, position yourself on the uphill side of the viewing platform where you can capture the full trunk against the sky — the downhill angle makes it look oddly squat for a 267-foot tree.
NPS
