Postcard from Sequoia National Park, Northern California

Hello from… Sequoia National Park. Almost four hours north of Los Angeles, the park is home to expanses of towering Sequoia trees. It sits along a belt of National Parks and Forests that wind their way northward through California along the Sierra Nevada: King’s Canyon, Sierra, Yosemite, Stanislaus, and more— an attractive collection for any outdoor enthusiast. The General Sherman Tree—thought to be the largest tree in the world, volume-wise—is one of the park’s main attractions, with visitors from around the globe winding along the petite two-lane road to catch a glimpse. We drove up from Ojai through Bakersfield, witnessing an elevation change of nearly 7,000 feet as we made our way up and into the park’s upper reaches.

Where I’m staying… We spent a couple days at Autocamp Seqouia, an Airstream glamping experience I’ve been curious about since they launched. The property, dotted in both Airstreams and rugged canvas tents, sits just above Lake Kaweah on the outskirts of Three Rivers. As the name might suggest, the town is named for three forks of the Kaweah River that converge, and the property sits along the fresh and clear water that descends from the mountains above it. 

The property is centered around a communal lodge, where breakfast, lunch, dinner and—most importantly—beer are served, and a small pool where families gather to cool off after a long day in the park. We preferred a swim in the river, which was pristine.

The best meal I had… There are a few restaurants in the area, but we were most excited about staying at the property, lighting up the outdoor fire pits and grilling. We purchased what we needed at the serviceable market in town and sat around the picnic table outside our door on the first night, eating grilled Polish sausages alongside a tomato and tomatillo salad with pistachio—all ingredients we had purchased at the Ojai Valley Farmer’s Market before our trip North.

Most fun things I did… Sequoia was a beautiful park, but with one way in and one way out (at least from where we were staying), we found it harder to access and too busy for our tastes. The real highlight of our visit was loafing around the campsite in the evenings, when the temperatures cooled and families milled around, cooking dinner over the fire pit. 

In the afternoons, we loved floating in the cool river at the base of camp. Our son loved “surfing” in the small section that had a current where the rivers converged. We enjoyed standing in the stomach-high water, sipping on Madre Desert Water and chatting.

The book I read… It seems like Patrick Radden Keefe’s London Falling was on a lot of people’s lists this summer, and I was no exception. The book, which fleshes out the story he wrote for The New Yorker in 2024, is about an ambitious grifter who finds himself tangled up in London’s dark underbelly, and plunges to his death under highly questionable circumstances. Patrick’s writing is clear, beautifully paced, and well-researched, making him a treat to read over a long summer sojourn.

The playlist on repeat… Happy Sad is a playlist I built to capture the particular feeling I get when driving through California, best described as “wistful.” The beauty and the light in some places is, at times, painful. It makes me feel happy sad.

What I packed… We were gone for one month, and through a variety of microclimates. This was a challenging pack, considering our family value of not checking bags. It means seeking out accommodations with washer/dryers; and for those without, like Autocamp, I’ve gotten very good at doing laundry in a sink, shower, or bath. In Sequoia, temperatures reached 98 degrees during the day. I lived in a few vintage t-shirts and khaki shorts, plus Salomon trail-running shoes with Falke tennis socks during our hikes, and Birkenstocks around the campsite in the evening.

We like to cook as much as possible on our road trips, and I’ve found that starting the trip with a few essentials makes for easier meal time. I always buy a big bottle of olive oil, a small box of Diamond kosher salt, a selection of nuts (pistachios and walnuts this time), and some high-quality tinned tuna. We usually pick up lemons along the way. I keep the cooking elemental, leaning heavily on whatever great produce we can find, which is effortless in California.

A thing or two I learned… While The General Sherman Tree is the largest tree in the park, the oldest is the nearby President Tree, around 3,200 years old. I had never felt a Sequoia tree before, and we were shocked when we placed our hands against the soft, sponge-like bark. At first I thought, is it rotting? As it turns out, the soft bark that blankets the trees can grow to almost two feet in depth, and protects the trees from fire, disease, and rot. 

Sequoia is beautiful, but I found it more challenging—a long drive in and out to get to good hikes, and in most places, more crowds than we wanted. I’ve learned that I tend to prefer National Seashores to National Parks, where the crowds are thinner and the coastal vistas are more dramatic.

The best thing I’m bringing home… A bitchin’ tan and lungs full of fresh air.