Parking
Limited parallel parking is available at the Hazelwood pullout on Generals Highway. The Big Trees parking area across the road is a separate lot with different seasonal access rules, so do not count on it as overflow.
Overview
About Hazelwood Nature Trail
Why go
- Easy half-mile loop with only about 50 feet of gain
- Firm-packed, six-foot tread with benches and interpretive signs
- Meadow, creek, and giant sequoias in one short walk
Heads up
- Limited parallel parking at the trailhead
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Sequoia map
Full mapElevation6,414–6,462 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
8 active Sequoia alerts
- InfoGenerals Highway weekday hazard-tree removal delaysMentions Generals Highway, referenced in this guideExpect weekday delays of up to 30 minutes total on Generals Highway between Highway 180 and Giant Forest, 8 a.m.–5 p.m., while crews remove hazard trees; the highway remains open.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 Hazelwood Nature 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
Giant Forest Museum and Round Meadow0:00 / 0:37
“You're approaching Giant Forest Museum, a small museum in the grove's former market building. Start with the hands-on sequoia exhibits, then step outside to Sentinel Tree.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Sequoia Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Pinewood Picnic Area
- Auto Log and the Washington and Young Trees
- Tunnel Log
- Parker Group and Buttress Tree
- 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 Hazelwood Nature Trail
What the loop offersHazelwood Nature Trail is a 0.
Hazelwood Nature Trail is a 0.5-mile loop through mixed-fir forest and giant sequoias around the upper end of Hazelwood Meadow. It gains about 50 feet; allow 30–45 minutes if you stop at the interpretive panels. This is an easy, low-commitment walk for a meadow edge and close-up forest detail, rather than a long backcountry outing.
Around Hazelwood MeadowThe firm-packed path circles the meadow’s upper end and crosses a small creek by footbridge.
The firm-packed path circles the meadow’s upper end and crosses a small creek by footbridge. Signs interpret the plants and animals here and how they survive the seasons; look for water-loving plants and wildflowers near the creek and meadow. Benches and pullouts give you places to pause. At the meadow edge, include a bit of trail with the sequoias in your frame to show the scale.
Access and route fitStart at the Hazelwood pullout on Generals Highway, where limited parallel parking is available.
Start at the Hazelwood pullout on Generals Highway, where limited parallel parking is available. The mapped loop begins a short walk from the roadside access. An orientation panel at the Alta Trail junction lists 0.6 miles for the loop and 0.7 miles from that point. This entry maps the closed 0.5-mile loop itself; the longer figure includes a different starting point and approach. The park describes the firm-packed, six-foot tread as suitable for wheelchairs and strollers; the maximum grade is 10% and the cross slope is under 2%. Pets are prohibited on park trails. The separate Big Trees area across the highway has a vault toilet and drinking fountain in summer; neither is at Hazelwood’s trailhead.
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.
