Parking
Garfield Grove Trailhead is in the South Fork Campground area at the end of unpaved South Fork Road. NPS recommends a high-clearance vehicle; check current park access information for the last drivable point and legal parking.
Overview
About Garfield Grove Trail
Why go
- Several large sequoia stands reward the long approach.
- Snowslide Canyon adds a dramatic landslide opening to the forest climb.
Heads up
- The main grove is about five uphill miles from the start.
- The return repeats the same steep trail.
Garfield Grove Trail is a steep 10-mile out-and-back to a remote giant-sequoia grove, with about five miles uphill each way. Choose it if walking among big trees in a backcountry setting matters more to you than a quick, easy grove stop. The price is a full day: expect a steady climb on the way in and the same corridor back. Allow about seven to nine hours if you want time to explore the trees. If you want an easier sequoia outing, save your time for one of the shorter walks in Giant Forest.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs the long climb worth it?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Sequoia map
Full mapElevation3,694–6,932 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
8 active Sequoia alerts
- ClosureSouth Fork campground and trail access restrictionsMentions South Fork, referenced in this guideSouth Fork Campground is closed, vehicles cannot reach the old trailhead parking area, and trails in the South Fork drainage are not currently passable to stock.Official details
- 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
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Sequoia Tour Guide
Your drive to Garfield Grove Trail, 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 tourRecorded for this trailhead
South Fork Campground and Ladybug Trail0:00 / 0:25
“Up ahead is South Fork Campground, a primitive riverside camp well away from the main park highways. There's no drinking water or food here, so bring your supplies.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Sequoia Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- The Oak That Grows a Nursery
- The Vulture's Wobbly Flight
- The Case That Crawls
- Leaves Held on Edge
- 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.”
Trail guide
Hiking Garfield Grove Trail
The climbThe route starts in the South Fork Campground area and climbs through oak woodland, gradually…
The route starts in the South Fork Campground area and climbs through oak woodland, gradually turning to pine and denser conifers. Poison oak has been reported on the lower stretch, so keep to the tread. Near Snowslide Canyon, the forest opens across an arroyo left by a major 1867 avalanche and landslide. Look across to the concave scar above it; then the trail returns to the woods and keeps climbing. NPS also points out views of Homer's Nose, a granite dome prominent enough to be seen from Visalia.
Go deep into the groveIsolated sequoias appear around three miles in, but they're not the whole payoff.
Isolated sequoias appear around three miles in, but they're not the whole payoff. The larger groupings come near the five-mile mark, including an open, relatively flat stand with a high density of large trees. Garfield Grove spreads along the hillside instead of ending at one marked viewpoint, so take time to walk among the stands before turning back. For a photo, include several trunks and some of the sloping forest floor to show the trees' scale.
Keep the route straightThe 10-mile figure here is the South Fork trailhead-to-grove trip and return on the same way.
The 10-mile figure here is the South Fork trailhead-to-grove trip and return on the same way. The trail continues beyond the grove toward Hockett Plateau, but that's a longer through-route; it isn't included in this distance. Pets are prohibited on park trails, though service dogs are allowed.
Plan the approachThe trailhead is in the South Fork Campground area at the end of the unpaved South Fork Road;…
The trailhead is in the South Fork Campground area at the end of the unpaved South Fork Road; NPS recommends a high-clearance vehicle. Check current park access information for the last drivable point and legal parking, since the old trailhead lot is not the same as the current road end. No food service is listed for the trailhead or route, so plan this as a self-supported day hike.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Sequoia
691 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
17 sightingsMountain LionMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
18 sightingsBobcatMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
24 sightingsCoyoteMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
15 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 11 AMSighting map
20 sightingsSpotted OwlMost seen around 7 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Sequoia. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
