Mariposa Grove

A large giant sequoia is surrounded by a wooden fence along a snowy path

Magical winter backpacking in Mariposa Grove

on

During every backpacking trip, I question my sanity. This is typical during miles 5 through 7 or on any uphill section. However, on my recent trip to Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias in Yosemite National Park, this questioning came a …

Mariposa Grove's giants. Photo by Jenkinson2455, Flickr Creative Commons

Travel: Mariposa Grove to Reopen After Multiyear Restoration

on

Yosemite National Park’s Mariposa Grove of Giant sequoias is expected to reopen this fall after a multiyear restoration. In addition to red giants standing higher than a 30-story building, visitors will find new, wheelchair-accessible trails and boardwalks, roads converted into hiking trails, and an interpretive display of a fallen ancient giant.

Mariposa Grove. Photo by jenkinson2455, Flickr Creative Commons

Happy Birthday Mariposa Grove!

on

Today marks the 153rd birthday of the spectacular giant sequoia grove in Yosemite National Park, Mariposa Grove. The protection of Mariposa helped inspire a movement of conservation at a time when sequoia were being cut, leading to the protection of the biggest trees in the world.

This drawing shows how the upgraded Mariposa Grove trails will protect sensitive giant sequoia habitat while still giving visitors the amazing views of the forest. Image courtesy of the Yosemite Conservancy.

Restoring Mariposa Grove

on

The towering giant sequoias of Yosemite National Park are the iconic trees that catalyzed our Nation’s conservation movement, inspiring Congress in 1864 to designate both the Mariposa Grove and Yosemite Valley “for public use, resort, and recreation”. Today, these mammoth …

U.S. Cavalry with the Fallen Monarch tree, Mariposa Grove, 1899. In the days before park rangers, the army administered the national park.

War, the White House and Redwoods Conservation

on

The roots of redwoods conservation extend back more than 150 years, all the way to President Abraham Lincoln. In 1864, in the midst of the Civil War, Lincoln signed The Yosemite Valley Grant Act that transferred federal lands in the …

Mariposa Grove, Yosemite.

“Success”

on

That was Saturday’s word of the day, according to our guide, National Park Ranger Dick Ewart. Dick led a group of 15 of us on a hike through the lower Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias in Yosemite National Park.  He …

Giant sequoias in Mariposa Grove, Yosemite.

Grove Protected by Lincoln Offers Historical Perspective

on

Next week will be my second visit in eight months to the Mariposa Grove of giant sequoias in Yosemite National Park.  That makes me a lucky guy.  My wife Joanne and I visited the Grove in May, while our traveling …