I’d spontaneously and very briefly been to Sequoia National Park a little over a decade before Matt, the kids and I made our way back in September 2023. I was so excited to show Matt these giant trees and I had since learned that there was so much more this park than just the Sequoias. We planned out an amazing few days in Sequoia National Park with toddlers.
Quick Info About Sequoia National Park
Cost to Enter: The cost to enter Sequoia National Park is $35 for a private vehicle, or $20 per person if you’re coming in as a pedestrian. If you’re interested, it’s only $80 for an annual National Park Pass – Read This Post to see if it’s right for you.
Most Known For: Sequoia National Park is best known for its, you guessed it, Giant Sequoias! Also, though, it’s the gateway to the Sierra Nevadas. So, just know there are some spectacular mountain views here that shouldn’t be missed as well!
Where to Stay: We stayed at Wuksachi Lodge and it was honestly the perfect place to stay. It’s located right in the Giant Forest, there is a restaurant that serves breakfast, lunch and dinner and the rooms are really comfortable. The one con (or pro depending on who you are) of this lodge is that you can’t get wifi in the rooms. It’s only available in the lodge lobby, which is a separate building.
Nearest Town: Three Rivers is the closest town. There are several places to stay here, but just know, it’s an hour to the Giant Forest from there.
Be Bear Aware: American Black Bears call this park home. When we checked in we were told that there were several very active bears in the park. Of course, I was terrified. We took storing our food very seriously, and I would recommend you doing so too because there are potential fines otherwise. That said, we didn’t see any bears on our trip here, which I personally call a win!
Look Ahead for Road Closures + Other Anomalies: Being located in decently high elevations, some roads and even trails completely shutdown in the winter. So, when you’re planning your trip, be sure you look into what could potentially be closed during your time in Sequoia National Park. Also, look ahead for other things. For example, we had no idea there was a wildfire in the park until we were en route! Luckily, we made lots of phone calls and figured out that we were going to still be able to safely and healthily visit!
Is There a Junior Ranger Program? Yes, there is a Junior Ranger program available. It’s combined with Kings Canyon National Park. In fact, Charleigh got her very first Junior Ranger badge here!
Gear We Recommend for Visiting Sequoia National Park with Toddlers + For Ourselves
These are all things that we personally used while hiking and exploring in Sequoia with our little ones and think they’d help you too! Some of them are seasonally specific, but we’ll start with the anytime gear.
Hikes We Did in Sequoia National Park with Toddlers
These are trails that we decided we could easily hike (or we were willing to hike) with our little ones. Sometimes we let our daughter walk, other trails we used the stroller for Liam, or the Deuters Kid Comforts for both – I’ll let you know at the bottom of our trail descriptions.
GENERAL SHERMAN TREE + PART OF CONGRESS TRAIL
Trail Length + Difficulty: 1.2 miles total, out and back + 2 mile loop, total would be 3.2 miles. Both these trails are rated easy.
This trail is paved, but does still have stairs along the General Sherman Tree Trail, just in case you read “paved” as stroller-friendly. Even if you just do General Sherman, you’ll see a lot of very large Sequoia Trees. There are even more along the Congress Trail. Charleigh was maxed out after a bit of Congress Trail, so we turned back.
Did We Let Our Toddler Walk? Yes, this trail was one Charleigh walked.
Side Note if You Have a Handicap Plate: There is a handicap accessible parking area for General Sherman that makes it just a few hundred feet to the world’s largest tree by volume.
MORO ROCK
Trail Length + Difficulty: 0.5 miles total, out and back. This trail is rated moderately difficult.
It may seem silly that such a short hike is rated difficult, but this is 350+ stairs straight up a granite rock face and then those stairs back down. The views you get from the top of this granite dome are truly spectacular: just mountains, mountains and more mountains. We were there during a wildfire, so our view was a little marred by the smoke, but it was still absolutely beautiful and I would recommend it to anyone going. My dad went a couple days after us, though, and was just covered in clouds. So be mindful of what’s going on with the weather and do not go up during a thunderstorm.
Did We Let Our Toddler Walk? Heck no. This has so many sheer drop offs and our daughter is not ready for a trail like this. We carried her and Liam in our Deuter Kid Comforts. Read why we love them HERE.
BIG TREES TRAIL
Trail Length + Difficulty: 1.2 miles total, loop. This trail is rated as easy.
This trail starts at the Big Tree Museum and is paved. The trail takes you through a dense forest, then you cross the street and approach a meadow that is lined with sequoias. You circle the meadow before traveling back through another denser forest and back to the parking area. There are several, you guessed it, big trees along this trail. It’s a beautiful trail and I would recommend it to someone wanting to see some huge trees with less people than General Sherman. We did add on a little bit of the Bear Hill Trail just to add a little mileage.
Did We Let Our Toddler Walk? We had to wake Charleigh up from a nap to do this hike, so she was not in the mood to walk, so we carried her in the Deuter. But, we would’ve gladly let her hike this trail.
LITTLE BALDY TRAIL
Trail Length + Difficulty: 3.4 miles total, out and back. This trail is rated moderately difficult.
The climb to this granite outcrop is just as beautiful, if not more beautiful views than Moro Rock, but it does climb 1000+ feet in less than 2 miles. You start out through the forest and follow switchbacks up the side of the cliff. Then the trail sort-of plateaus at the top for a bit, starting to open up to some stunning mountain views between the pines. Then, there’s a slight scramble up the granite face up to the summit of Little Baldy. The views up here were so stunning and we enjoyed sitting atop this mountain for a bit. The descent would be hard on someone with bad knees, so be prepared with a knee brace or walking sticks as it’s then 1,000+ down.
Did We Let Our Toddler Walk? This is another no. She wouldn’t have it in her for this type of incline and there were some drop-offs, especially at the summit. This was another Deuter hike for her.
Other Things to Do In Sequoia National Park with Toddlers
Obviously, looking at how our adventures have been in the past, we didn’t do the same amount of hiking that we would without kiddos, especially during a wildfire… But we found a lot of other things that are fun, beautiful and adventurous.
Take a Scenic Drive through the Giant Forest + Beyond: Driving in the park still gives you some really beautiful vantage points. There are several overlooks along the drives. But, I do have to say, that driving through the Giant Forest is especially, well, special. You’re surrounded by 2,000 year old giant trees! So, even if you’re only able to do this in the park, I would still recommend it, but I hope you’re able to do some of the extra stuff too!
Drive Through Tunnel Log: Tunnel Log was carved into the fallen Sequoia in 1937, which fell over on its own. The hole carved in it is 17 feet wide and 8 feet tall, but there is also a bypass for vehicles larger than that. I highly recommend driving through the tree, just as a fun kitschy thing to do!
Helpful Note: This is a very popular location to take photos; which means that A LOT of people stop here. So, be mindful of this and don’t pull an asshole move like parking under Tunnel Log, setting up a camera while you then crawl on top of Tunnel Log taking loads of photos letting 10 cars back up around you… True story. We saw this happen. For me, it was just fun videoing us going through from inside the car. I know everyone is different, just be respectful of others’ time.
Fun Fact: A lot of people think there’s a living tree you can drive through in Sequoia National Park. However, that was actually done in Yosemite and the tree later fell down in a storm. NPS now prioritizes the protection of these trees over the roadside attraction of them. So, there will likely not be another drive-through living tree in the US National Parks again.
Walk Among the Parker Group: The Parker Group is located along the same road as Tunnel Log. In fact, it’s the last pullover before Tunnel Log. This is a closely grouped, massive 8 giant sequoias. One of the best parts, too, is that it’s okay to truly walk between them. They’re stunning and just so impressive to truly stand and walk between.
Stop in At Visitor Centers: I love stopping at visitors centers. Rangers will often give you tips to places you’ve maybe not heard of. Also, there are often displays about the park’s history, scenery, flora and fauna that I find really interesting. We watched a video about black bears here. Also, if you’re visiting Sequoia National Parks with toddlers, you can pick up the Junior Ranger Booklet at Visitor Centers.
Take Part in the Junior Ranger Program: Junior Ranger Programs are available at most NPS sites, including National Parks. Sequoia + Kings Canyon have a joint Junior Ranger Program here. These programs are free and such a fun way to get your kids intrigued by the parks. Read More about the Junior Ranger Programs VERY SOON.
Visit Kings Canyon National Park: These parks are literally back-to-back. If you have the time, I would definitely recommend going to Kings Canyon. There are some beautiful hikes here as well!
Giant Forest Museum: This is where the trailhead for the Big Trees Trail is and if you’re here around the time that it’s open, I would go. We never made it there around the opening hours (9am-6pm) but the next time I go, I will definitely visit this museum.
General Tips for Visiting Any National Park with Toddlers
Set Realistic Expectations: I have to say, when we took our 2022 Moab trip, I had lofty dreams of hiking 10 miles a day or something crazy like that! To put it simply, unless you have the most laid back, go-with-the-flow toddler, that probably isn’t going to be your reality. Set realistic expectations for what you’re going to be able to accomplish each day.
Don’t Be Too Hard on Yourself or Your Little: Traveling with a kid is absolutely a gift, but that doesn’t mean it’s always easy! So, don’t think you’re not doing enough and try not to get frazzled with them. They’re totally out of their routine and element.
Bring Distractions: We brought a lot of books, downloaded a Super Simple Songs playlist on Spotify and brought some toys to keep them distracted on drives and hikes.
Get them Excited About the Nature Around You: You can do this in so many ways! Like I mentioned above, if you’re kid is old enough to even slightly grasp the concept, grab a Junior Ranger Booklet! Point things you see or hear out to your kids in nature. Let them touch trees, rocks, etc. and discuss what textures they’re feeling.
Bring Plenty of Their Favorite Snacks with You: Never underestimate the power of their favorite snacks. We always busted out Bluey Gummies for Charleigh when she was about to have a meltdown. Liam loves the yogurt pouches, so those were our go-to for him to keep him satisfied on his hike. They’re such a treat and she only gets them so often, so they snapped her out of that mood a lot. We also stocked up on both of their favorites for the drives.
I can’t promise that traveling to Sequoia National Park with toddlers is going to be easy. We dealt with a serious meltdown on General Sherman Trail (sorry fellow hikers who were there). But I can promise that traveling to Sequoia National Park with toddlers will be an unforgettable experience you’ll remember for the rest of your life.
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