[Transcript]

Sequoia Habitat

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Welcome back! Did you enjoy the views at the overlook? Sure hope so. Now, as we make our way back down the mountain, have you ever wondered why there are so many sequoia trees in this part of the Sierra Nevada and not in other areas? You see, these giants prefer living about halfway up the mountain, between 5,000 and 8,000 feet above sea level or about 1,500 to 2,500 meters. This is about our elevation right now. 

Up here in this zone, the temperatures are mild and there's plenty of snow melt to keep these trees happy and hydrated. With these prime conditions, the biggest sequoias grow between 250 and 300 feet tall or 15 to 20 stories high. Now, there are taller trees in the world, including their cousins, the coastal redwoods, that can reach well over 300 feet. 

Sequoia Trunk and Roots

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But it's the sequoias' immense trunk size that makes them the biggest trees in the world. When they reach maturity, sequoias can add the equivalent of a 50-foot tree to their mass every year. And with that kind of growth, you can get sequoia trees with a trunk that's over 30 feet wide and with a circumference of over 100 feet. I mean, it would take at least 20 full-grown adults to hold hands around one of these giant sequoia trees.

Sequoia Root Systems

Now, with these kind of stats, you'd think that the root system for sequoias would be pretty serious, right? I mean, their roots really do mean business, spreading out as much as 200 feet out from the trunk. But they don't grow very deep at all, only getting about, oh, maybe five feet below the surface. 

That's pretty incredible, don't you think? Rather than digging down to keep themselves upright, they reach out and intertwine with the roots of their neighbors. And by doing so, they're able to hold on and support each other. Now, these amazing root systems are one reason sequoias can withstand weather and fire and live for over 3,000 years. 

Logging in the Sierra Nevada

But they don't protect against every threat. Back in the late 19th century, California was growing fast, and the demand for lumber was high. Loggers braved these mountains to cut down the great sequoias. 

But these groves were in such a remote location that transporting harvested logs was heavy work. So the logs were sent down those giant flumes. Now, as you saw at the overlook, Hume Lake was created as a reservoir for one of these water slides. 

These flumes descended thousands of feet to lower elevations, running from high in the Sierra over 50 miles south to California's Central Valley. And down there in the valley, towns like Visalia and Porterville became busy hubs for the mining and logging operations up here. And for a couple of decades, that's the way things stayed.

Later, I'll tell you more about this land's backstory, how it evolved from a promising economic powerhouse into a national park, and then into a different national park. The evolution of Kings Canyon is the evolution of national parks themselves. But for now, let's just enjoy the drive. 

It's just a few minutes before we get back on the main road.