Near Lodgepole Village, Sequoia National Park in Tulare County, California — The American West (Pacific Coastal)

Middle Fork Canyon

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, June 25, 2011

1. Middle Fork Canyon Marker

Inscription. An earlier road to Giant Forest, completed in 1903, quickly proved inadequate for increasing motor car use. Completion of a new road providing wider turns and less grade became a high priority, so a road survey of the Middle Fork Canyon was ordered in 1918. Following a zone of softer metamorphic rock, the road construction was still an arduous task. In 1926, visitors were able to travel the new highway from Ash Mountain to Giant Forest.

Despite its open appearance, the Middle Fork Canyon of the Kaweah River is nearly as deep as Arizona’s Grand Canyon. The summit of Moro Rock is 4,000 vertical feet above the canyon floor, and east of here the canyon is even deeper. The steep terrain of this region made pioneer access extremely difficult. Only after the construction of the Generals Highway, 1921-1926, did Giant Forest become easily accessible.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in this topic list: Roads & Vehicles. A significant historical year for this entry is 1903.

Location. 36° 32.685′ N, 118° 45.26′ W. Marker is near Lodgepole Village, Sequoia National Park, California, in Tulare County. It can be reached from Moro Rock/Crescent Meadow Road. This marker is found near the summit of Moro Rock in Sequoia National Park. Moro Rock can be reached from Moro Rock/Crescent Meadow Road by taking

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the Moro Rock Loop to the Moro Rock trailhead. From there it is a 1/4 mile, 300 feet, 400 step climb. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sequoia National Park CA 93262, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in California’s San Joaquin Valley,

specifically in the Central Valley,

and in the Sierra Nevada.

It is also on the American Pacific Coast.

Globally, it is in North America,

on the Ring of Fire,

in the Pacific Rim,

in the Western Hemisphere,

in the Western World,

and in the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain

and also Mexico’s Alta California.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 2 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: The Naturalists (approx. 0.7 miles away); The CCC Boys (approx. 0.7 miles away); Call the Cavalry! (approx. 0.7 miles away); Stephen Tyng Mather (approx. 0.7 miles away); Buttress Tree (approx. 0.7 miles away); Auto Log (approx. 1.1 miles away); Colonel Young: A Buffalo Soldier (approx. 1.1 miles away); For the Good of the Giants (approx. 1.7 miles away).

Middle Fork Canyon Marker with the Generals Highway in the Background image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, June 25, 2011

2. Middle Fork Canyon Marker with the Generals Highway in the Background

The Generals Highway - California 198 image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Barry Swackhamer, June 25, 2011

3. The Generals Highway - California 198

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on July 8, 2011, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. This page has been viewed 852 times since then and 12 times this year. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on July 8, 2011, by Barry Swackhamer of Brentwood, California. • Syd Whittle was the editor who published this page.