Fallen Monarch

Fallen Monarch is a fallen giant sequoia in Grant Grove, best known for the path through its hollow trunk. It gives you a close look at a sequoia from the inside, and makes a good stop on the same visit as General Grant Tree.

The tree is one of several stops on the one-third-mile paved General Grant Tree loop, alongside the General Grant Tree, Gamlin Cabin, and Centennial Stump. Start at General Grant Tree parking area, about a mile northwest of Kings Canyon Visitor Center. Pets aren't allowed on park trails.

The hollow forms a passage with an opening at either end. Step inside and look through to the far opening; the tunnel view makes the trunk's size easier to grasp than standing beside it. For a photo, frame one opening through the other so the log fills the view.

Fire hollowed the trunk before it fell, though its exact fall date is unknown. The Gamlin brothers are said to have used it as shelter while building their cabin nearby. Later accounts describe the hollow as a gathering place and saloon, then a U.S. Cavalry stable. The details and sequence aren't certain, but the stories give this fallen tree a place in Grant Grove's human history.