Redwood Mountain Overlook

Redwood Mountain Overlook is a roadside viewpoint on Generals Highway, just west of Redwood Mountain Road. From the pullout you look across the canopy of Redwood Mountain Grove, one of the world's largest giant sequoia groves. I'd make it a short stop if you want to see the grove from above; this is a view across treetops, not a walk among individual giants.

Pull in from Generals Highway just west of Redwood Mountain Road. The overlook has auto parking and is listed as wheelchair accessible; historical and interpretive exhibits are also listed. No restroom is listed for this pullout, so don’t count on one here. The view is mostly forested ridges and canopy, so visitors looking for a close-up of the trunks should choose a grove walk instead.

Park scientists began to understand fire's role in forest ecology at this overlook. Heat opens giant sequoia cones and releases their seeds, while fire clears brush and makes room and sunlight for seedlings. Large trunks often carry fire scars near ground level; their living crowns grow far above most flames.

Redwood Canyon has thousands of dogwood trees. Their branches carry white blossoms in spring and early summer, then turn red, brown and yellow in autumn. From this high viewpoint, the color spreads through the forest rather than showing each tree in detail.

For a wide photo, use the trees at the edges to frame the valley and keep the forested ridges in view. That gives a sense of how much of the landscape is canopy, which is the point of this overlook.