The hook
The largest living thing on Earth by volume is a giant sequoia in the southern Sierra, and it stands in a forest full of trees nearly its size.
01Why it's worth it
General Sherman is a giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) in the Giant Forest of Sequoia National Park, and by volume it is the largest known single-stem tree alive: about 275 feet tall, 25 feet across at the base, and roughly 52,500 cubic feet of trunk. It isn't the tallest tree (coast redwoods win that) or the oldest (the bristlecones do), but nothing else alive has this much wood, an estimated 2,300 to 2,700 years of it. The tree was named for the Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman. What makes the visit more than a single-tree stop is the Giant Forest around it, one of the densest stands of huge sequoias anywhere, with the Congress Trail, Moro Rock, and Crescent Meadow all within a few miles. Standing at the base and failing to take the whole trunk in one look is the point.
02How to experience it
From the main trailhead a paved path drops about half a mile to the tree and climbs back, which sounds easy until you feel the 7,000-foot altitude. In summer the upper lot fills and the park runs a shuttle, so come early or ride it. Add the Congress Trail loop to walk among the named giants with a fraction of the crowd, then drive out to Moro Rock's staircase for the view over the Great Western Divide. The Generals Highway up from the foothills is long and winding and can be snowbound in winter, so this is a warm-season trip.