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The Generals Highway is a highway that connects
It is named after two of the largest and most famous
State Route 180
The following highways are numbered 180:
Australia
* Pyrenees Highway
Canada
* New Brunswick Route 180
* Prince Edward Island Route 180
* Winnipeg Route 180
Costa Rica
* National Route 180
Ireland
* R180 road (Ireland)
Japan
* Japan Na ...
and State Route 198 through Sequoia National Park
Sequoia National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California. The park was established on September 25, 1890, and today protects of forested mountainous terrain. Encompassing ...
, Sequoia National Forest
Sequoia National Forest is located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains of California. The U.S. National Forest is named for the majestic Giant Sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees which populate 38 distinct groves within the boundar ...
, Giant Sequoia National Monument
The Giant Sequoia National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the southern Sierra Nevada in eastern central California. It is administered by the U.S. Forest Service as part of the Sequoia National Forest and includes 38 of the 3 ...
, and Kings Canyon National Park
Kings Canyon National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, in Fresno and Tulare Counties, California. Originally established in 1890 as General Grant National Park, the park was greatly expanded and renamed to Kings ...
in the Sierra Nevada
The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...
of California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
. As the road goes through national parks and monuments, the highway is primarily maintained by the federal government instead of a California State Highway controlled by Caltrans
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) is an Executive (government), executive department of the U.S. state of California. The department is part of the Government of California#State agencies, cabinet-level California State Tran ...
.
Route description
It is named after two of the largest and most famous Giant Sequoia
''Sequoiadendron giganteum'' (giant sequoia; also known as giant redwood, Sierra redwood, Sierran redwood, California big tree, Wellingtonia or simply big treea nickname also used by John Muir) is the sole living species in the genus ''Sequoiade ...
trees, the General Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman ( ; February 8, 1820February 14, 1891) was an American soldier, businessman, educator, and author. He served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War (1861–1865), achieving recognition for his com ...
and General Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General of the United States ...
trees. The highway is notoriously steep, narrow, winding, and difficult to drive, especially its southern section from Hospital Rock Hospital Rock may refer to several places:
* Hospital Rock (Tulelake, California)
*Hospital Rock (Three Rivers, California)
Hospital Rock is a large quartzite rock in Sequoia National Park, located just off of the Generals Highway, on the Midd ...
to Giant Forest
The Giant Forest, famed for its giant sequoia trees, is within the United States' Sequoia National Park. This montane forest, situated at over above mean sea level in the western Sierra Nevada of California, covers an area of . The Giant Forest ...
within Sequoia National Park. This section also consists of numerous switchbacks, and has a speed limit
Speed limits on road traffic, as used in most countries, set the legal maximum speed at which vehicles may travel on a given stretch of road. Speed limits are generally indicated on a traffic sign reflecting the maximum permitted speed - expres ...
of 10 MPH. Regulations restrict the length of vehicles—they must not exceed , although vehicles longer than are not recommended to use the road between Potwisha Campground and Giant Forest Museum.
The Generals Highway begins as a continuation of SR 198, where the state highway legally ends at the southern boundary of Sequoia National Park
Sequoia National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada (U.S.), Sierra Nevada east of Visalia, California. The park was established on September 25, 1890, and today protects of forested mountainous terrain. Encompassing ...
. The road travels northeast along the middle fork of the Kaweah River
The Kaweah River is a river draining the southern Sierra Nevada in Tulare County, California in the United States. Fed primarily by high elevation snowmelt along the Great Western Divide, the Kaweah begins as four forks in Sequoia National Park, ...
and enters Sequoia National Park through the Indian Head Entrance. Near the Hospital Rock turnout, the road turns north and goes through several turns before straightening out and continuing northeast, passing near the General Sherman Tree. At Lodgepole Bridge, the road turns west before later turning north. Generals Highway leaves Sequoia National Park through the North Entrance, entering Sequoia National Forest
Sequoia National Forest is located in the southern Sierra Nevada mountains of California. The U.S. National Forest is named for the majestic Giant Sequoia (''Sequoiadendron giganteum'') trees which populate 38 distinct groves within the boundar ...
. The road continues northwest through Giant Sequoia National Monument
The Giant Sequoia National Monument is a U.S. National Monument located in the southern Sierra Nevada in eastern central California. It is administered by the U.S. Forest Service as part of the Sequoia National Forest and includes 38 of the 3 ...
before traveling along the northern border of Kings Canyon National Park
Kings Canyon National Park is an American national park in the southern Sierra Nevada, in Fresno and Tulare Counties, California. Originally established in 1890 as General Grant National Park, the park was greatly expanded and renamed to Kings ...
, briefly entering it before terminating at SR 180.
History
Two of thestone bridges
In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's o ...
on the highway are listed on the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
.
Major intersections
See also
*References
External links
{{commons category Roads in Tulare County, California Giant Sequoia National Monument Kings Canyon National Park Sequoia National Park Sequoia National Forest National Register of Historic Places in Tulare County, California Named highways in California