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Chimney Tree in Sequoia National Park

Sight · Sequoia National Park

Chimney Tree

Step inside the hollow left by a 1914 fire.

Photo: CC BY 2.0
Type
Sight
Nearest trail
0.4 mi
Audio stories
9 nearby
  • Scenic viewpoint
DirectionsMap

Hear the audio tour

Crescent Meadow and Tharp’s Log

Overview

About Chimney Tree

Why stop

  • A fire-opened sequoia hollow you can step inside

Map

Where it is

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Full map
SightChimney Tree36.55988, -118.74743
Keep this map with you offline in the Parkwolf app

Plan your stop

Before you go

8 active Sequoia alerts

  • CautionStage 1 fire restrictionsStage 1 fire restrictions are in effect due to high fire danger and catastrophic-wildfire risk; the restrictions reduce the possibility of accidental human-caused fires that could threaten visitors…Official details
  • ClosureGrant Grove trails and areas closed for prescribed burnSome trails and areas around Grant Grove and the General Grant Tree are closed for safety during a prescribed burn and until they are cleared of hazards.Official details
See all 8 alerts
A park ranger sits on a dash-mounted phone, talking, as Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays “Army Cutworm Moths: A Grizzly Bear Buffet” on Grand Loop Road below Dunraven Pass in Yellowstone
Parkwolf Tour GuideThe highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.

Sequoia Tour Guide

Your drive to Chimney Tree, narrated.

Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Sequoia National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.

See the Sequoia audio tour

Recorded for this place

Crescent Meadow and Tharp’s Log
0:00 / 0:33
“Crescent Meadow is coming up, an open wetland ringed by giant sequoias, with picnic tables near the trailhead. Stop here if you'd like a gentler outing with room to see the red trunks against the meadow grass.”

Plays as you drive up to Chimney Tree in the Parkwolf Sequoia Tour Guide.

More stories near here in the app

  • Tunnel Log
  • Parker Group and Buttress Tree
  • Auto Log and the Washington and Young Trees
  • Moro Rock
  • 71 audio storiesacross Sequoia’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
  • Wildlife heatmapsfor Black Bear, Mountain Lion, Bobcat, and 13 more
  • Works offlinemaps, 99 trails, 68 places, and audio download before you lose signal
  • CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
★★★★★
“…The kids and my husband and I all agree that the narration really added to our experience driving through the parks. We learned so much about the history and the flora & fauna.”
JessestblondeApp Store review
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4.7 from 8,600+ ratings

Guide

More about Chimney Tree

A sequoia opened by fireChimney Tree is a giant sequoia on the Crescent Meadow / Log Meadow loop, known for a trunk…

Chimney Tree is a giant sequoia on the Crescent Meadow / Log Meadow loop, known for a trunk burned hollow in 1914. If you're walking the meadow loop, step into the dark opening; the view from inside is the reason to pause here.

Inside the hollowThe burn left an open chamber through the trunk.

The burn left an open chamber through the trunk. You can stand inside and look up through the fire-blackened wood, a different way to take in a tree that might otherwise read as a big trunk from the path. More than a century later, the hollow is still slowly weathering.

Photograph the fire scarThis is a close-looking stop.

This is a close-looking stop. Back up enough to frame the whole base and hollow, then move in to show the blackened interior. The small identifying sign beside the trunk can anchor a photo, but keep the fire-opened sequoia in the frame.

sequoiatreefirehistorylandmark

Wildlife

Wildlife in Sequoia

All Sequoia wildlife maps
Black Bear691 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 6 PMSighting mapMountain Lion17 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 6 AMSighting mapBobcat18 sightingsBobcatMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapCoyote24 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapGolden Eagle15 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSpotted Owl20 sightingsSpotted OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting map

Sighting maps show where each species has been reported across Sequoia. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.

Keep exploring

Near Chimney Tree

See it all on the map

Trails nearby

ChallengingHigh Sierra Trail48.9 mi · 1.7 days · 0.4 mi awayA 49-mile wilderness crossing from Giant Forest to the John Muir Trail.ModerateTrail of the Sequoias3.3 mi · 2.3 hr · 0.4 mi awayQuiet sequoia traverse from Crescent Meadow to the Congress Trail.ChallengingHamilton Lakes Trail30.2 mi · 18 hr · 0.4 mi awayA high granite lake, reached by an exposed Sierra traverse.ModerateCircle Meadow Loop4.3 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.4 mi awayA meadow circuit through Giant Forest's wildflowers and sequoias.ChallengingBearpaw Meadow via High Sierra Trail22.8 mi · 16 hr · 0.4 mi awayA long Sierra traverse opens to Kaweah canyon and Bearpaw Camp.ChallengingTamarack Lake Trail31.8 mi · 16 hr · 0.4 mi awayA 32-mile out-and-back to a lake at 9,215 feet.EasyCrescent Meadow Loop1.4 mi · 1 hr · 0.4 mi awayA short loop where giant sequoias frame Crescent Meadow.EasyEagle View Trail1.5 mi · 1.5 hr · 0.4 mi awayA short climb from Crescent Meadow to a sweeping Sierra view.

More stops nearby

Sight · 0.3 mi awayCrescent MeadowAn open meadow framed by giant sequoias, with two memorable tree stops.Sight · 0.3 mi awayTharp's LogA 70-foot sequoia log became a summer cabin.Sight · 0.4 mi awaySquatters CabinA tiny log cabin anchors a larger Kaweah Colony story.Sight · 0.7 mi awayEagle ViewA short climb to a long look across the high Sierra.Sight · 0.9 mi awayThe SenateSeveral giant sequoias gather along the Congress Trail.Sight · 0.9 mi awayThe HouseNamed for Congress, ringed by towering sequoia trunks.Sight · 0.9 mi awayTunnel LogDrive through a fallen giant sequoia on Crescent Meadow Road.Sight · 1 mi awayPresident TreeOne of the world's largest sequoias, reached on Congress Trail.

Parkwolf’s Sequoia ranking

Top sights in Sequoia

All 68 places
  1. 1General Sherman TreeSight
  2. 2Moro RockSight
  3. 3Crystal CaveSight
  4. 4Crescent MeadowSight
  5. 5Tokopah FallsSight
  6. 6Tunnel LogSight

Take Parkwolf to Sequoia.

The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.

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