This is one of, if not the best trail in the Giant Forest. So many people are interested in simply seeing the General Grant Tree, that they miss this trip and miss an amazing group of trees. We were told he Giant Forest has many miles of trails, some of them we found to be not clearly marked, but the Congress trail is easy to follow, and takes you to some of the larger trees. If you have the time, don't pass up this one.
Beginning at the Sherman Tree, this two mile paved trail has striking and unique collections of giant sequoias: the House and Senate Groups, the fallen Telescope Tree, the President Tree, and others. The trail is mostly gentle ups and downs, but take water.
A paved trail off-chute from the Sherman Trail makes for a nice escape from the crowds. Saw deer there and a huge pile of resting, oversized timbers.
I couldn't help comparing the Redwood trails (sorry, no reviews for these) to the Congress trail and Sequoias. If you have a chance, go see the Redwoods closer to the coast. As for the Congress trail and the Sequoias, I wasn't as excited to see these trees and wasn't as impressed. The trail is ok (make sure to bring some water if you go). We walked this trail after visiting the General Sherman tree (that was nice to see) and thought it was ok, but wouldn't say I would do it again.
I thought the trail was a workout, but as long as you don't push too hard, a person who is not in great shape can do it. We saw lots of wildlife including a bear with cubs, deer and chipmunks. The General Sherman Tree, the largest living tree by volume is amazing. The restrooms close to General Sherman smell terrible for about 100 yards because they are the hole in the ground kind.
Really loved this extension to visiting Sherman. We spent about 3 hours doing the full Congress Loop and a bit further into Circle Meadow. So much more variety and interesting Sequoias to see here and much more of opportunity to see wildlife. It was amazing how quickly the crowds and noise disappeared on this trail. My favorite thing we did in Sequoias N.P.
We recently went throught the Sequoia National Park and Kings Canyon Park. Explored for two days, seen majestic sights, from humogous trees to non-stop mountain tops, roads with curves next to cliffs and deep dropoffs. I can only thank my other half for his careful driving, extreme patience, and great sense of direction in navigating to some sights that were majestic, and easy to see why they became National Parks.
Very few people on this trail even though the park was fairly crowded. Very Peaceful and surreal as you can stand beside the giant sequoias...each grouping just a bit different. Take your time walking out to the parking lot! Can be a little tough at the higher elevation so remember to breathe!
The Congress trails adds several impressive Sequoias that make a trip to see General Sherman even more enjoyable. Its a 2-mile trip with very little elevation gain. If you find yourself at GS then I would definitely recommend adding this short hike.
Тропа начинается практически от Генерала Шерана. Несмотря на то, что неспешная прогулка занимает не больше 1,5 часов, на тропе очень мало туристов, что создаёт ощущение приватности. Красиво и умиротворяюще.