Tag Archives: Sequoia

Conservation, National Forests, National Parks

Returning Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep to the heart of Yosemite

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep are back in Yosemite’s Cathedral Range after over 100 years of absence!

Between March 26 and April 3, 2015 seven ewes were moved to the Laurel Creek area of Sequoia National Park. During this same time period ten ewes and three rams were were moved from the Inyo National Forest and Sequoia National Park and released into the cliff habitat of the Cathedral Range in Yosemite National Park. All migrated sheep are in great condition, with nine of the Cathedral Range ewes pregnant (the single non-pregant ewe is a yearling).

From the National Park Press Release:

A multiagency operation was recently concluded that returned two herds of endangered bighorn sheep to locations in Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks. The California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW), Yosemite, Sequoia, and Kings Canyon National Parks, Inyo National Forest, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, worked together on the complex operation in the Sierra Nevada.

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National Parks

Happy Anniversary Kings Canyon National Park!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Happy 75th Anniversary, Kings Canyon National Park!

From Wikipedia:

Kings Canyon National Park is a national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, east of Fresno, California. The park was established on March 4, 1940 and covers 461,901 acres. It incorporated General Grant National Park, which was established in 1890 to protect the General Grant Grove of giant sequoias.

The park is north of and contiguous with Sequoia National Park; the two are administered by the National Park Service jointly as the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks.

History:

Kings Canyon had been known to white settlers since the mid-19th century, but it was not until John Muir first visited in 1873 that the canyon began receiving attention. Muir was delighted at the canyon’s similarity to Yosemite Valley, as it reinforced his theory regarding the origin of both valleys, which, though competing with Josiah Whitney’s then-accepted theory that the spectacular mountain valleys were formed by earthquake action, Muir’s theory later proved correct: that both valleys were carved by massive glaciers during the last Ice Age.

Then United States Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes fought to create the Kings Canyon National Park. He hired Ansel Adams to photograph and document this among other parks, in great part leading to the passage of the bill in March 1940. The bill combined the General Grant Grove with the backcountry beyond Zumwalt Meadow.

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National Forests

Mount Whitney on this day in history – July 3rd

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

In July of 1864, a California State Geological Survey led by William H. Brewer, indcluding Charles F. Hoffmann, James T. Gardiner, and Clarence King, named the culminating peak of the Sierras “Mount Whitney.”  Named forJosiah Whitney, who was the State Geologist of California and benefactor of the survey.

With an elevation of 14,505 feet Mount Whitney is the highest summit in the contiguous United States, and is the boundary between Inyo and Tulare counties.

On this day, July 3rd, 1926, Sequoia National Park was expanded to include Kern Canyon and the West slope of Mount Whitney.  The summit is the southern terminus of the John Muir Trail, while the eastern slope is in the Inyo National Forest in Inyo County.

State Parks

California’s state parks are great places to …

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Today the California State Parks Foundation launched a new campaign: “California State Parks are Great Places to …” This week the focus is on great places to walk among giants!

How would you fill in the blank? The possibilities are endless! Share your own “Great Places” photos and stories on the CSPF website HERE.

You can visit, join, and support the California State Parks Foundation HERE.

National Forests

For the Sierra, Sequoia and Inyo National Forests it is time to comment on Forest Plan revision!

Posted on by Shawn E. Bell

Background

The Land Management Plan or Forest Plan is the principal document that guides the decision making of Forest Service managers.  Forest Plans provide long–range management direction.  The National Forest Management Act (NFMA) is the primary statute governing the administration of national forests.  The planning rule interprets the NFMA and guides the amendment and revision of all land management plans.

The U.S. Forest Service’s Pacific Southwest Region has released the final assessments for the Sierra, Sequoia and Inyo National Forests, the Bio-regional assessment, and a preliminary Need to Change. The public is invited to provide feedback on the Need to Change.

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